Nothing is Ever as it Seems
by Pharaohsprincess2015
Summary: Princess Ashtianna only wanted to live the life she wanted to and not what was forced upon her by her parents and her kingdom. She might just get what she has always wanted when she is forced to go into hiding when a potential suitor takes a dark turn. Rated T for now but could change in later chapters. Warning Fem. Joey, Ryou and Malik
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters from Yu-Gi-Oh in this story. I do own Princess Ashtianna.

 _Thoughts will be written in Italics_

"Verbal Conversation will be in Quotes"

Prologue

5000 years ago is where our story begins, in a small kingdom located on the coast of Greece. The kingdom is ruled by King Alexander and Queen Layla. The kingdom was prosperous and overflowing with happiness and has been at peace for over 200 years. However, One day, 17 years ago, something amazing happened that would change the kingdom and the lives of the king and queen forever; a little girl was born and they named her Ashtianna. The King and Queen were overjoyed because it was their assumption that they could never have children after trying and failing for so many years. The kingdom rejoiced for their new found princess and oh was she a beauty. The princess was born with brown hair like her mothers, light tanned skin and beautiful emerald green eyes like her father. When she first opened her little eyes, the king and queen were shocked as they had never seen such amazing and beautiful eyes that shined so brightly. Royals and peasants alike came from far and wide so that they could get a glimpse of the princess as she was, without a doubt, the kingdoms pride and joy. Ashtianna Alexandria Leon never thought that her beauty and smiling personality would bring her kingdom such sorrow.

~ 17 Years Later ~

"Ashtianna!" _Where on earth is that girl! I am getting far too old for this._ "Ashtianna!" The King had been searching for the young princess for over an hour with no luck. Tired and frustrated the king was very close to giving up but just as King Alexander was about to admit defeat, Joey, Ashtianna's trusted bodyguard and closest friend, entered the garden.

"Joey! Have you seen Ashtianna anywhere lately? I have been searching for her for what seems like hours and cannot seem to find her. I swear that girl needs to start growing up and taking her responsibilities as princess seriously… (Sigh)…. Joey, if you see her please tell her that her mother and I are looking for her as we need to discuss her future and this kingdom's future along with it." With that the King took his leave and left finding his daughter in the capable hands of his adopted daughter, Josephine.

"You can count on me my lord" proclaimed Joey in a very assertive and commanding tone. As soon as the King was out of earshot though her wall began to come down revealing Joey's true personality and demeanor.

…..

"Ash! I know that you are here! Come on out. Your father is gone now" Yelled Joey as she craned her neck looking up into the nearest tree. All Joey heard next was rustling of leaves and giggling from one of the trees in the garden.

"Ash….? Come on down. What are you doing up in the tree?"

"It was the only place that I knew father would never think to look" said Ashtianna as she slid down out of the tree, landing gracefully on the ground without a scratch on her body. And that body was quite a bit different now than the one she had when she was 5 years old and climbing trees. The princess still had all her beautiful qualities that she had as a child but everything about her now screamed grown up. The princess had grown a considerable amount but was still considered to be quite short, standing at about 5"3. Her skin was in no way pale but she was not as tan as her comrades or her parents. The princesses brown hair now fell down, in natural waves, to the small of her back. Her hair had also lightened from the sun over the years giving her natural blonde highlights throughout making it shine in the morning sun. Her eyes still held a shine that could only compare to rarest of emeralds. She hardly wore any makeup as she did not need to but she did lightly outline her eyes with some kohl. Her outfit consisted of an aqua blue, two piece shear, chiffon skirt and a matching top that showed a small amount of her midriff. There were small gold details on the edge of the skirt and on the top rim of her top. She was also adorned with gold arm bands on each arm and a gold circlet around her head to signify her status. She was still a beauty to behold and no other in the kingdom could compare.

"Why are you hiding from him? Your father loves you and has always looked out for your best interests." Joey asked, still puzzled as to why the princess was going out of her way to avoid her father.

"I know….. But the only thing we ever seem to talk about lately is how I am at the age where I should be seeking audiences with eligible men to find a future husband, so that I can make alliances and bear children and become a woman and blah, blah, blah….. I'm sick of being pushed to marry someone that is only after my wealth and beauty!….. I'm sorry Joey… I just want to fall in love on my own time… It does not help that my father and mother have been pushing that Dartz guy in my face lately…. I mean, I'm sure he is a wonderful man but I can't help feeling that he is not interested in me as a person, he is just interested in my title… You're so lucky Joey! You have no responsibilities to this kingdom and you get to marry for love." She said softly, ending with a sigh. Ashtianna raised her face to the sky just in time to notice two birds flying by, intertwining their wings; flying together in perfect harmony… _Even the birds get to fall in love_ …. "I wish I wasn't the princess anymore…. It's not fair" scoffed Ashtianna, crossing her arms against her chest.

Joey felt bad for her best friend. They had known each other ever since she could remember. It was Ash who introduced her to the King and it was Ash who convinced the King and Queen to take her in as their own when they found out that her parents were killed when some thieves raided her village. Ash was out shopping in the village when they first met. Joey tried to steal one of the princess's bracelets but she caught her, but instead of the princess getting mad she decided to give Joey the bracelet to help her. Eventually the two girls became very close and Ash began to worry about Joey's safety so she went to her father and asked if Joey could stay in the palace. The King was apprehensive at first but soon decided that what his daughter needed was a friend and Joey was a beautiful young girl who just needed a good place to grow up. The King and Queen knew that, if given the chance, Josephine could grow up to be a wonderful young woman who would stick by their daughter's side like the sibling they could never give her.

Joey did grow up to be an amazing friend and ally. Joey was a lot more adventurous than Ashtianna and she always seemed to go out of her way to cause trouble. She was strong, both physically and mentally. The King noticed this quite quickly and decided that it would be best to have Josephine take out some of her anger and energy into studying battle. Joey turned out to be one of the best soldiers in their militia but the King and Queen thought that the best place to keep Joey would be at their daughter's side as a friend and also as a body guard. Queen Layla never felt right about having the male soldiers being in such close proximities to her daughter so having Joey there was the next best thing. Joey's combat skills grew and developed over the years but so did her appearance. Joey was only one year older than Ashtianna but looked quite a bit older. While the princess looked years younger than she actually was, Joey had a hardened appearance to her that made her seem much older than she actually was. Joey stood quite tall at 5"11. She had lightly tanned skin that accentuated her toned muscles from all her combat training. Joey had sandy blonde, curly hair that reached down to her butt. Joey always adorned her eyes with a bit of Kohl to accentuate her honey brown eyes. Joey hated that most of the women in the kingdom were made to wear skirts so she instead opted to wear a slim fitting pair of pants with a skirt that draped over top. Her top consisted of a strapless armour top which was both stylish and helpful in combat situations as it protected her more. She also had a belt which had her sword strapped to it as she never went anywhere without her sword.

Joey felt bad that she couldn't do anything to help her friend as she also did not like this Dartz guy that was trying to weasel his way into the Royal family.

"I know Ash, I don't like him either… he gives me the heebie jeebies. Every time he comes near me or tries to talk to him I feel like stabbing him in the throat just so I wouldn't have to hear his voice anymore" Joey stopped dead in her tracks once she noticed the open jaw that her friend was now sporting " – I mean – punch him in the face? Yeah, punch him. All I want to do is punch him in the face whenever he opens his mouth, but hey, maybe you can talk to your parents into maybe looking elsewhere for a husband?…. I mean they can't all be like that guy, there has to be some decent guys out there still… right?" Joey knew full well that finding a guy that would love her best friend for what was inside her and not her status would be hard to find but he still wanted to keep her spirits up

Ashtianna gave a huge sigh "I know…. But –"

"Ashtianna!" yelled Queen Layla from the palace balcony. "Get up here right now! Your father and I have some matters to discuss".

 _Ugh! Can I not catch a break for once in my life?_ "I will be right up mother! I'll see you around Joey! Maybe you and I, Ryou and Malik can go for a ride later on today? I need to get out of this palace soon or I think I might go crazy!" with a final smile Ash took off towards the throne room where her parents were waiting for her.

"See you Ash!" _Wait till she gets there and finds out what it's really about…. I wish I could have told her that her parents have arranged her marriage already with a foreign prince…. Sigh…. At least it's not Dartz…. I wonder what the prince of Egypt will be like…._

With that in mind Joey heads off to try and find her other friends to maybe plan something to distract their friend from the future she never asked for.


	2. Chapter 2

King Alexander and Queen Layla knew very well that their daughter was not happy with them in their push to find her a suitable husband. They also knew that Ashtianna needed someone to rule by her side. The King and Queen knew that their daughter was perfectly capable in ruling the kingdom on her own but they also knew that some people in the kingdom or neighboring kingdoms would not take her seriously enough without a King to rule by her side. They thought by bringing in Dartz it would open up their daughters mind about meeting someone and possibly thinking about the idea of marriage. However, after having Dartz in their home for over a month they realized that not only was he not good for their daughter but absolutely horrible for their throne. He seemed to only care about becoming King and only showed interest towards their daughter when they were in the room. As soon as they realized that Dartz would not be suitable they sought out other suitors. Many men answered their search but they only seemed to talk about how beautiful the princess was and how much they could do once they were crowned King with all the palace treasures. The King and Queen were becoming desperate. As much as they wanted their daughter to be happy they needed to look out for their Kingdom as well. They were about to give up until they heard that Pharaoh Aknamkanon was looking for a Bride to wed his eldest son. The arrangement would be perfect. The prince was only a couple of years older than Ashtianna and this way they would create an inseparable bond between Greece and Egypt.

"How do you think she will react to the news dear?" asked King Alexander of his lovely wife and queen.

"She definitely will not be happy about this new arrangement but at least we aren't pushing Dartz on her anymore." Answered Queen Layla.

"Yes that is true, we still need to let the young man know that we no longer want him courting the princess." Added the King.

"Yes, he will also not be happy about that either….. You can tell let him the bad news dear" answers the queen batting her eyelashes at her king.

A smile graced King Alexander's face "You know I can't say no to you dear" said Alexander as he graced a kiss on her forehead lovingly.

Just as the King and Queen finish up their conversation, Ashtianna enters the throne room.

"Mother. Father. You wished to see me?" announced Ashtianna who seem to be having troubles staying as serious as she was because she was very close with her parents and hated the idea of fighting with them. Both the king and queen smile at their daughter "Yes Dear, please come closer, we have something to discuss." Said the King to his daughter.

"If this has anything to do with that slimy man that you continue to push on me, you have to know that he just wants to marry me to push you off the throne and gain power over our kingdom." Huffed the princess.

"Yes dear we know." Answered both the King and Queen together as one.

Ashtianna's face went from a serious glare to absolute shock in one second flat "You do?! Oh thank goodness! I was so worried that you were bringing me in here to tell me that you arranged my marriage or something….."

The King and Queen looked at one another with a hint of fear in their eyes. Ash's look of shock was very quickly replaced with fear…. She became very scared for what was to come next.

"My dear… It is true that we no longer want you to marry Dartz. We see the fault in our decision to try and push him on you. However, that does not mean we were going to give up on finding you a husband….. Your mother and I have found you a husband. The man in question is a young prince who is need of a wife to rule his kingdom with him and give him an heir, he is only two years older than you and –"

"YOU WHAT!" screams the princess.

"Now my dear, please, we have not even told who the young man is." Said Queen Layla, trying to calm down her furious daughter.

"Save it! I don't want to hear any of it! I can't believe that you would go behind my back like this! I told you I wanted to marry for love! I can't believe you would put the status of this kingdom before your own daughter! You know I could rule this kingdom on my own! I do not need a man by my side! AAGGGHHH!" screaming as she runs out of the throne room, ignoring any calls that her parents make to get her attention.

Alexander slumped down into his throne with his hand over his eyes and forehead. "What are we going to do with her? I don't know how to make things better." Sighed the King.

The King and Queen were so wrapped up in what just happened with princess Ashtianna that they failed to notice someone else enter the throne room.

"Ahem… King Alexander. Queen Layla. If I may be so inclined to ask, was that just the princess I saw leaving in a bit of a huff? Shall I go and try to comfort her?" asked the noble gentleman. This noble gentleman was none other than Dartz, the man who had originally been set up to court the princess. Dartz was a very handsome man. He was tall and striking blue hair that reached past his shoulders. He was dressed in the fanciest white linens that were rimmed in light blue, and he also and a blue sash of sorts that fell down in front of his body right in the middle, between his two legs. However, the most striking thing about him was that he had one light blue and one gold. It was actually quite creepy and Ashtianna hated when she found him looking at her. He was quite a bit older than the princess being 26 years old and he had married before but his first two brides had mysteriously passed away….

"Ah Dartz, just the person we wanted to see. The princess is just a little upset over some new arrangements made for her future."

 _Arrangements? Future? Finally these two got it through their thick skulls that I am what is best for their kingdom. I knew if I stuck it out long enough they would see my side of the story. This was like taking candy from a baby. It helps that their daughter is hot as hell. I mean if I have to marry her and have her by my side at least she's easy on the eyes. I mean I won't have much use for her once I'm king and she produces me an heir. After that I will just take in as many mistresses as I want._ An almost evil smirk graces Dartz's face. "Ah yes, and what a wonderful future it shall be. I already have a ring ready. She will be the most beautiful bride in all the land."

"We do not doubt that she will be a beautiful bride. However, she will not be _your_ bride." Confirmed Queen Layla.

Dartz continued on as though he did not hear a word of what the King and Queen just said. "The wedding shall be a grand affair! We shall invite the entire kingdom and all the noble men and women and – Wait – What did you just say?"

"We are sorry Dartz but we have found another suitable husband for the princess. We apologize for taking up your precious time but we had to put our kingdom first. We hope there are no hard feelings." Said King Alexander.

"No hard feelings? NO HARD FEELINGS!? I have done everything to court your daughter and show you that I am exactly what this pathetic kingdom needs for a King! It is not my fault that her skull is as thick as a boulder! She doesn't know how good she has it with me! Who on earth would be a better husband for her than me!?" yelled an irate Dartz

"Now Dartz we will not stand by as you talk badly of our kingdom and of our daughter. I will ask you to leave now before we have to force you out" YELLED King Alexander as he stood from his throne, standing up against Dartz. Dartz and the King just stared at one another, neither one wanting to back down before the other.

"You will be sorry Alexander. I will make you rue the day you said no to me. Nothing you try to do will stop me from taking your kingdom and your precious princess!" with that, Dartz turns his back on the King and Queen and storms out of the throne room and out of the palace.

 _I have worked way too hard to see all of this go down the drain just because a spoiled little brat believes in finding true love! Ugh! Alexander will pay….._


	3. Chapter 3

Hello everyone! I've gone on a writing spree to avoid some of my school work! (Yay procrastination!) Chapter 3 is now up but I'm hoping to get a couple more followers and reviews to see what people are thinking! This is my first time writing fanfiction and would love to hear what you're liking about the story so that I can stay motivated to continue getting chapters up as quickly as possible!

Disclaimer: Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the characters from Yu-Gi-Oh in this story. I do own Princess Ashtianna.

"AAGGGHHHH! How could they!" screamed Ashtianna as she threw herself onto the garden grass. The bright, warm sun shone down on her as she remained completely still staring up at the big beautiful blue sky. However, Ashtianna could not focus on the beauty of the day because all she could think about was this man. All she could think about was this man that was apparently going to be….. her husband!?.It was these thoughts that brought upon the princesses last straw. Tears began to roll down her cheeks onto her dress, creating small tear stains throughout the fabric of her skirt.

 _This can't be happening….I'm just now beginning to understand myself and now they want me to marry someone that I know nothing about, let alone ever met…..Is it so wrong for me to want to marry and fall in love on my own time…?_

Ryou Bakura happened to be walking past the garden with her latest scroll when a faint sound of crying could be heard coming from inside the gardens. _Hmmmm I wonder where that is coming from?... Oh no what's wrong with Ash…. I don't think I have ever seen the princess so unhappy before…_

"Hey Ryou! I've been looking for you! Joey was wondering if – "

"Sshhhhhhhh!"

"Did you just shush me!? Um excuse me but –"

"Malik! Be quiet! I don't want to disturb the princess! Something seems to be upsetting her…."

Both Malik and Ryou peered around the corner to try and sneak a peek at their obviously distressed friend. Both Malik and Ryou have been close friends with the princess for a very long time, not as long as Joey but they still know their friend like the back of their hand. Ryou was brought into the palace as a small child because of her intellect in the history of Greece and the rest of the world and also her skills in wielding magic. Since studying at the palace she has become one of the most powerful light magicians around. Ryou also has the uncanny ability to sneak her way around any security system put in place. At one point Ryou was able to apprehend a thief trying to get to the princess to poison her by running in the shadows and completely blindsiding the thief before he even realized he was being followed. Ryou's magic and skills are powerful and sought out by all but all of it does not compare to the young girl's beauty. Ryou has an exotic type of beauty to her. She has very fair skin, so fair that it almost glows when in the moonlight. Ryou also has long white hair that reaches past her butt but most of the time she puts it up into a messy up-do to keep it out of her face while she is reading her scrolls or trying out some of her more powerful spells, she just finds that it gets in the way but refuses to cut it. Her eyes are a deep dark brown color which makes her look very innocent and angelic. Ryou donned herself in a flowing white strapless dress that is shorter in the front and longer in the back with a silver belt to accentuate her tiny waist. She chooses not wear too much jewelry but makes a point of always wearing her silver chain necklace that was given to her by her grandmother. Ryou is the quietest in the group of four girls and tends to be quite shy but when it comes to dangerous situations and looking out for the well-being of her friends, you do not want to mess with her.

Malik entered into the groups' life a little later on in their childhood. Malik was caught by the queen sleeping in the stables. Now, in most cases the queen would have had thrown the intruder out within seconds but young Malik was not just in any stall in the stable. Malik was sleeping in the stall of Lysander, a stallion that would not let anyone near him, let alone ride him. The queen took the next couple days to test her theory of Malik's uncanny ability to work with animals. Queen Layla was right in her theories as any animal that was put in a room with Malik was instantly subdued and became as silent and calm as a lamb. Malik's skill became very useful when training horses for the army and other wild animals to use as protection or even pets. Malik also proved to be amazing in combat. No one ever wanted to mess with Malik because they knew they were not going to be coming out on top. The only difference between Malik and Joey is the fact that Malik makes a point of not looking like a gross sweaty man when she fights (not that Joey does). Malik thinks that the arte of looking sexy and feminine while still being strong and unstoppable in combat is very important. Malik is originally from Egypt which explains her golden tan skin. Malik has light blonde hair that falls to the middle of her back which is usually unruly and messy while still looking absolutely amazing. One other thing that makes Malik such a gem in the beauty department are her lilac eyes. Any man who has ever tried anything with Malik has been shot down and reminded to never try again. Malik is also one to stay away from the typical flowing white dress that most women in Greece wear. Instead, Malik wears a tight black bandeau type top that just barely covers her chest, a long black skirt which has a very high slit on the right leg which Malik claims helps her move in combat. Malik also wears two gold arm bands, a small gold chain that wraps around her midsection and a black band on her right leg where she hides her dagger in case of sticky situations.

Both girls worried for their dear princess and friend who is usually always in such high spirits.

Malik began to whisper "What should we do? Do you know what has caused her to be in such a state? I swear if that Dartz guy did anything to our Ash I'll slit his throat."

"Calm yourself Malik. I'm sure there is a valid explanation for this rare occurrence."

As Ryou shifts back to looking at the princes she accidentally kicks a small stone, creating a small disturbance but enough of a disturbance to notify the princess that she is no longer alone.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" cries the sniffling princess while trying to compose herself.

The two girls poked their heads around the corner and entered the garden "It's just Malik and I princess, no need to worry."

"Oh… Hi girls…. How are you?" asked the princess, trying her hardest to mask the fact that she had just been crying for the last 10 minutes.

"We are fine…. But we are more concerned for you…. What's going on Ash? Is everything alright?"

"Oh everything is fine, nothing out of the ordinary here…. Just may parents trying to control my life and making me marry a man that I have never met before so that he can become King and produce him an heir and… and….and…. I just don't know what to do anymore!" the princess cries finally breaking down into tears yet again.

The two other girls look at each other with sadness for their friend. The three were silent for quite a long time but Malik is the first to break the silence.

"Look! The reason why I was coming over was to come grab you and Ryou to go for a ride. Joey is meeting us at the stables. Come on it will be good for you to get out of the palace."

Ashtianna takes a while to answer Malik and Ryou's persistent stares but she finally gives in to their puppy dog eyes.

"Oh alright already!... Thank you girls…. I don't know what I would do without you…"

The girls headed off to the stables to meet Joey. Just being with her friends and seeing their smiling faces was already putting princess in better spirits, at least higher spirits than she was five minutes ago.

 **Meanwhile in Egypt…..**

"You did WHAT!?" shouts a very irate young prince.

"Atem, please calm yourself. You knew this day was coming. You are 19 years old. I am not getting any younger and I am hoping to pass the crown on to you in the coming years. However, I would feel a lot better about making you Pharaoh if you had a queen by your side to help you in ruling the Kingdom. Plus, having a queen is the only way you can guarantee yourself an heir.

Pharaoh Aknamkanon knew that his son was not going to react well to being told that he had gone ahead and arranged a wife for his son. He was quite pleased with the arrangement made with King Alexander to marry his only daughter, Princess Ashtianna. The princess was known by all for her beauty and kindness but the prince would hear noting of it.

"Why can I not fall in love in my own time? I do not plan on keeping mistresses so I want to make sure the person I marry is someone I will want to be with."

"You gave me no choice son. You continue to ignore Lady Anzu and Lady Vivian even though they would be perfectly suitable as Queen. You ignore any of the Noble women around the city and any passing princesses that have accompanied their fathers on business you have shunned and ignored. I cannot leave this life not knowing that my son will be married to someone acceptable of the crown! I am sorry son but this is the way it shall be. I have made up my mind. The princess is beautiful and –"

"I don't care how beautiful she is! Her beauty says nothing about the person she is our how our personalities will go together….. You got to marry for love…. Why can't I?"

"I was able to marry for love because I found your mother at a young age. You however, are running out of time. The princess will arrive in two months' time and the wedding will proceed a month later. Until then you will continue your pharaoh lessons and get ready to take the throne."

"BUT!...Fine…." with that the young prince leaves his father and the throne room.

 _This is not what I asked for in life….. Why can't I just be pharaoh and not have to give up so much of me to get there….. Maybe the princess will be okay….. agh who am I kidding. She is probably a spoiled brat who only cares about jewelry and her looks just like all the rest of them_

 **Back in Greece….**

"So do know who the man you're going to marry is? What does he look like? Is he sexy? Hopefully he isn't too ugly"

The girls rode side by side through the streets of the kingdom. The conversation so far had been about the princess's slightly annoying predicament of marrying someone she has never met.

"Malik I did not even give my parents the chance to tell me his name let alone if he is good looking or not" the princess giggled at her friends constant thoughts about males and how good looking they are.

"Give Ash a break Malik. How would you feel if you were just told you were to marry someone from a different kingdom that you have never met" yells Joey

"Sorry Ash…."

"It's not a problem…. I guess I should have waited around to find out who the guy is… I was just so upset!"

"Don't worry Ash, Whatever comes your way next we will be right by your side through all of it." Ryou states as the rest of the girls nod their heads in the princess' direction.

The rest of the ride was spent talking about food, clothes, boys, magic etc. Ashtianna almost forgot about everything that had happened earlier on in the day… almost…. Just as the girls were getting back from their ride the warning bells rang clear through the kingdom…..


	4. Chapter 4

I am so sorry! It has been far too long since my last update but Exams caught up with me. I really hope you enjoy this next chapter! I would love to see more reviews!

Chapter 4

Ryou, Malik and Joey quickly fell into action. This is what Joey had been training for her entire life. Her sword slip so easily out of its compartment, like it was ready for this exact moment. Joey knew what needed to happen, she just wished that it did not have to be this way.

"Make sure the princess is safe! Keep her hidden! I need to get some things together. Stay in the garden until I come to get you! Malik! Come with me!" Ryou nodded while riding off towards the garden with the princess in tow.

"Joey! What is going on?" asked Malik as the two girls began to run towards the castle, towards the heat of battle… towards the King and Queen.

"I don't really know…. but the King and Queen made sure that if the warning bells were ever to start going off then our first and only objective is to make sure the princess is safe. Go and get the horses ready and get some food and water for the four of us, I have this horrible feeling that we are going to have a long journey ahead of us….. And Malik! Be ready to fight. I have a feeling that this is not going to end well. I'm going to see the King and Queen." Malik didn't have to say a word. There was a bond and knowledge between the girls that need not words to help understand. With that, Joey continued on towards the throne room and Malik headed off towards the stable.

The stench was almost too much for Joey…. She knew that nothing she was going to come up against was going to be pretty but nothing could have prepared her for what her eyes showed her next….There was a mess of bodies, most of which were the guards, some of the servants who were so unlucky to be working in that specific wing when the attacks first started. Joey quickly paid her respect for her fallen comrades but knows deep down that if she wants to help prevent anymore from falling then she needed to get to the throne room as quickly as possible. At that moment Joey looked up from her thoughts to see a guard running down the hall towards her. He was clutching his stomach and had blood running down his forehead, slowly dripping into his eyes, blurring his vision. Joey halted to a stop as soon as she saw the guard and pulled him to the side behind a curtain so that no one could find them.

"What is going on!?" whispers Joey in a tone like steel, grasping onto the guards robes. The guard pants then looks up at the blonde in front of him.

"Invaders from the Kingdom to the South…. they want…. the royal family as hostages and….. To take the throne so that they can expand their lands…. And so he… he….," He pauses then says, "It's Dartz…. He's gone mad… he wants to be king….all I know is it has something to do with the princess and her being promised to someone else? He is on his way to the throne room now!" Joey did not take the time to listen to the last bit of what the guard had to say… _I have to get to Alexander and Layla and quickly!_ Joey took off running as fast as humanly possible. Her only saving grace was going to be that fact that she knew the shortcuts to get her to the throne room…. And hopefully before Dartz. _I just hope I'm not too late….._

When Joey finally made it to the throne room the King and Queen were seated at their throne. The King and Queen did not seem to be worried about their current situation in the slightest. _How can they be this calm? Their kingdom is falling to ruins and they are just sitting there!_

"My King. My Queen. The Kingdom is falling apart! What is going on?" yelled Joey.

"Joey Darling we are so happy you are alright!" cried Queen Layla as she grabbed Joey in a large hug.

"Joey….. Dartz did not take us telling him that Ashtianna will be marrying someone else very well….he is now trying another approach, a much more violent approach to gaining the crown. Look…. He cannot become king without marrying Ashtianna. He may be able to get rid of myself and Layla but without the princess the kingdom will never accept him as their King. There will be riots and he will be ruling over a desolate kingdom."

Everything was happening so quickly. It was beginning to become all a blur…That's when they heard it.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"That must be Dartz. He has finally made his way to the throne room….. You must move quickly Joey!... Please take care of our daughter…. I do not know what Dartz has planned foe us but as long as he never gets his hands on Ashtianna we can bot rest easy knowing that she is safe and Dartz will never get what he wants…. Take her to Egypt and take this letter to the pharaoh. Everything is explained in there. The pharaoh will give you refuge and will keep you safe and hidden. You, Ryou and Malik will go with Ashtianna and all four of you will pretend to be the princess's hand maidens. No one must know Ashtianna's true identity. She was not to arrive for another couple months anyway so we will use it as an excuse to send you girls to prepare for her arrival. No one will think anything of i-

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"Quickly Joey! They will be through those doors in seconds!" cried the King.

"But!"

"Just go! Do not worry about us!"

Joey was conflicted. Alexander and Layla were like parents to her…. They practically raised her…. But she knew that her duty was to protect the princess, her friend, her sister….

"I will do my best. No harm will come to Ashtianna."

And with that Joey rushed off from where she came and just snuck into the passage as the throne room's large entrance doors flew open….

"Well, well, well….. What do we have here?" cried Dartz. His pleasant and polite demeanour completely wiped away and replaced with an evil glint in his eye and a smirk that would make anyone cringe.

"Dartz…. What have you done?! Why are you doing this? What have we ever done to you to make you do this to us, to our kingdom?" asked Queen Layla.

"Ah what a wonderful question….. All in due time your highness…. Now, where is that lovely daughter of yours?"….

Meanwhile…..

"MALIK!? Malik?! Where are you!?" screamed Joey. It took her mere minutes to make her way over to the stables where Malik was supposed to be getting everything prepared for their journey.

"Joey calm down! I am right here!" Malik whispered as she popped her head around the corner leading two horses, her own, which was a light sand coloured palomino, and Joey's, a large black stallion with wild hair that reached well past its neck, cascading over its one eye. The horses had saddle bags full of food and rations to hold the girls over for a couple of weeks.

"Good, Good. We need to get going. It won't take Dartz long to realize that we have taken Ashtianna out of the kingdom. Let's go get them. Here, Catch!" called Joey as she mounted her horse and threw Malik a dark, purple, hooded robe. "Put this on as soon as you can so that it's harder for people to recognize us."

The two girls rode over towards the garden to pick up the other half of their convoy, Joey just hoped that she wasn't too late.

 _Where are Joey and Malik? I don't know how much longer I can wait here and do nothing to help…_ Ashtianna was never good at sitting still and doing nothing but people always tended to believe that she needed protecting and would never be able to stick up for herself.

"Quit worrying Ash. Joey and Malik should be here right away and Joey will know what to do."

"I know I am just worried that something happened to them…. And what about my parents? Where are they? Are they okay?" asked the princess.

"I don't know any more than you do but I'm sure everything is under control."

Before Ryou could finish the next part of her sentence she heard thundering hooves getting louder and louder making its way towards the two girls who were currently cowering behind one of the tallest bushes in the garden which easily concealed the two girls and their horses with them. Both of the horse were calm and collected and stayed hidden quite well along with the girls. Ryou had a grey and white speckled horse and with a little bit of Ryou's magic a light blue streak had been placed throughout the horses' mane. The princess' horse was a beautiful brown and white paint mare with a long flowing white mane and her name was 'Star'. Ash had been gifted Star when she turned 15 as a birthday present. She had been riding from a very young age but it had always been on her parent's horse and never her own, until Star came along. Needless to say the horses stayed quiet and were quite well trained.

"Ashtianna! Ryou! The coast is clear! Come one we have to get going! The rest of Dartz men could be here any minute" cried Joey who was desperately trying to be as quiet as possible while still getting the other girls attention.

"Wait! Where are my parents?!" cried the Ashtianna

"Your parents are holding off Dartz in the throne room. They are distracting him so that you can get away. Dartz is after you so that he can marry you and take over the kingdom and we cannot allow that to happen so we must go now!"

 _But what about my parents….. The last time I saw them I was yelling at them and basically telling them that I hate them and that they are the worst parents ever…_ That's when Ashtianna lost it. She could not hold in the tears any longer.

"I know this is hard Ash. No one could have seen this coming. But we have to move. Getting you as far away from this place as possible is the best thing for both the kingdom and your parents."

Ashtianna wiped some of the tears off her face looking up at her three friends who had painful looks in their eyes but also a look of determination and love. _These girls are willing to do anything to help me and keep me safe… I need to pull myself together and do my part… be responsible for once in my life…._ Ashtianna wiped the remaining of her tears away and mounted Star.

"Alright, let's get out of here."

"First, put this on… all of you." Said Joey while throwing Ryou and Ashtianna both cloaks which resembled the same one Malik and Joey had one except where Joey's was red and Malik's was purple, Ryou had a solid white cloak and Ashtianna's was a pale aquamarine blue. "Oh, and before we go, Ash? I need to remove your crown… we don't want to draw any attention to ourselves where we will be going alright? I promise I will keep it safe."

All Ashtianna did was nod and quickly slip the circlet off and hand it to Joey. "Thank you Joey… now let's go."

The girls horses reared up as the galloped off out of the garden and headed towards the outskirts of the city. It was a long ways to Egypt and it would take quite a long time to get there. The journey would not be easy but the more distance put between them and Dartz, the better.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Atem was livid. Enough was enough. He was sick and tired of these suitors. Day in and day out, his father, the Pharaoh, forced him to sit in court as he had women prance in and out on fine platters like they were dinner entrées. They flaunted themselves, tried to seduce him, and did everything in their power to try and win him over. But Atem didn't care. It was bad enough he had to constantly deal with lady Anzu and Lady Vivian prancing around the palace like they owned the place. Lady Anzu wouldn't be too bad if it wasn't for her father pushing her on him every second of the day. At first, he gave each woman the benefit of the doubt. He would spend time with them and learn about them. But eventually, each woman turned out to be the same thing; a heartless creature who only offered herself to gain money or power. Or money _and_ power. Some even wanted to marry him just because of his attractiveness. That was the worst of all. Atem hated it and now his father wasn't giving him anymore choice…..

 _Now I am to marry some foreign princess that I have never met. She is probably exactly like all the rest of them; beautiful on the outside and completely rotten on the inside. How can my father ever think that this woman is right me and this kingdom?_

Atem was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that as he was walking through the halls of the palace he failed to notice that he was about to run into someone.

"Ooof"

"Hey! Watch where you're go—Oh Atem! What the hell man? Just cause you're the prince doesn't mean you don't have to look where you're going." Cried an irate Bakura who would most likely have some nasty bruising from the fall he just suffered

"Ugh" groaned Atem as he rubbed the side of his head as his head was down when he ran into the unexpecting Bakura.

"Yeah! Don't think that just because you're the crowned prince I won't sock you one."

And Marik…

"Sorry boys… I wasn't watching where I was going… My mind was occupied elsewhere." Answered Atem

The three young men helped one another up off the hard, jagged, stone flooring. The three young men had been close friends for quite some time. Although they did not start on such great circumstances they grew to become quite close; almost like brothers. Atem first met Marik when they were quite young. Marik came to the palace with his older sister Isis as she was working towards being a priestess in training and hopefully later becoming a full-fledged priestess to the pharaoh. Atem did not have any brothers or sisters as his father and mother were unable to bear any more children after Atem. Thus, Atem had a pretty lonely childhood until Marik showed up. Marik was one of Atem's first friends besides his cousin Seto. The two met and instantly became friends, and not just because they were two of the only young children in the palace. As the two grew their differences became more evident but it never changed their friendship. Where Atem became more interested in games and his magic lessons and combat, Marik found an interest in women. Marik is a very good looking man. He has bronzed skin with platinum blonde hair that reaches just past his shoulders. He was quite muscular as he trained the army and was captain of the guard. Most of the time Marik chooses to wear only a white tunic to cover his lower half and bare his muscular chest. He does make up for the lack of shirt with the amount of jewelry that he wears; donning a large gold necklace the width of his chest, two gold arm bands, earrings and gold bands around his calf muscles. However, the most striking thing about Marik was his piercing violet eyes. It was those eyes that landed him so many women in his bed after a long day of training. Even with all his faults Marik was loyal to the throne and his friend Atem. Atem only wondered if Marik would ever grow up and settle down. Atem also wondered about Bakura from time to time. All three young men had yet to find a women that made them head over heels crazy to give up any of their antics.

Bakura was definitely no closer than the other two men but he also didn't even seem like he was trying. Bakura is a strong silent type. Bakura was caught by the royal guards trying to steal some precious jewels from the pharaoh. The pharaoh was not impressed and had him sent to the prison to later be judged and most likely killed for his crimes. Atem witnessed the entire thing and thought that the boy was probably just hungry and did not have any money. The night that Bakura was sentenced a young prince Atem snuck down into the dungeon and released Bakura on the condition that he disguise himself and become his personal servant until it was the right time to reveal himself again. Bakura worked alongside Atem for a couple years till they were about 12 years old. However, everything changed one day when an assassination attempt was made on the pharaoh but instead of the arrow piercing through his heart it only hit the back wall as Bakura had already pushed the pharaoh out of harm's way. Atem later told his father what he had done and at first Aknamkanon was not happy but he soon realized that if the boy had been killed all those years ago he would not have been here today to save his life. Bakura was finally able to be rid of his disguise and became Atem's right hand man. Bakura grew into a powerful magician and was able to conjure many spells that other magicians would never dream of. Bakura also could never seem to get rid of his need/want to steal things. Atem once walked into Bakura's room to find most of the crown jewels sprawled across the tiled floor. Bakura knew what he had done was wrong but it was at that moment when the pharaoh decided to not only have Bakura continue his studies in magic but also become head of the scouting/infiltration group. Basically Bakura was in charge of a group of men and women whose job was to infiltrate other cities or even thief's hideouts and get as much information as possible without being caught. Bakura also grew to be very handsome along with the other two men. Bakura has long white hair that falls in front of his from time to time. His skin was not as tan as Marik's or Atem's but there was still some bronze coloring there. Bakura was tall though, not as tall as Seto but taller than Marik and Atem, which made him look even more handsome. He was toned and muscular but still lean which made him fast and agile in sticky situations. Many women pined over Bakura but he never gave them a second glance. Bakura could never understand the loud and obnoxious gossiping over absolutely nothing of importance. He was fine with women speaking their mind but when all it had to do with was make-up or hair or handsome men then he would completely snub them. Bakura wore white and blue robes that were tied at the waist with a black belt of sorts. He does not wear too much jewelry but he does wear the millennium ring. After Mahad was killed in an attack earlier on in the year while protecting the prince, the millennium ring chose a new owner and that was Bakura. Thus, Bakura also became a part of the pharaoh's advisors. Fear not, Mahad never truly left the palace as he fused with Prince Atem's favourite monster, the dark magician, to aid him even in the afterlife.

Atem counted himself really lucky because of the group of close friends he was able to acquire besides having grown up as an only child. Although they were caring they still treated him like a normal human being instead of the crown prince which was a relief most of the time but sometimes he wished they treated him like the prince when Atem happened to anger the other young men.

"Well that's no excuse. I am going to be bruised for weeks after that crash…. Ugh…. Well what was your mind occupied on now that we are on the topic we might as well get it out there." Asked Marik while he continued to dust himself off from the fall.

Atem was unsure of whether or not to tell Bakura and Marik about his latest dilemma…. _Oh well might as well, I'm sure these two would find out sooner or later._

Atem let out a lengthy sigh before beginning his explanations "The pharaoh just informed me that he has chosen a bride for me, that he is not giving me anymore time to choose for myself and that she will be here in 2 months' time."

Atem's explanation was met with silence and stares from both Bakura and Marik. Almost in sync both young men looked at each other and burst out into a fit of laughter. Atem's jaw dropped as he watched his so called friends roll on the floor in laughter. _Are you kidding me right now?_

"Hahahahaha…ha ah… I'm sorry Atem…. Guess you should have considered those other suitors when you had the chance."

"Wow thanks guys I really appreciate the compassion"

"Sorry Atem haha…. It's just, I never thought the amazing Atem would be tied down by a woman. Is she at least good looking? I mean if she's hot I wouldn't min –"

"Marik! Really?... To answer your question I don't know what she looks likes. I could care less what she looks like. All I know is that she is a foreign princess and the arrangement was made between our fathers." answered Atem.

"Well where is she from?"

"I'm not even sure. I left before giving my father the chance to tell me." _There is nothing he could have said to me to change my mind anyways_ "I just know that she is going to be like all the rest of them except this time…. I have to marry her….."

"Well you never know… she could be nice….."

"Wow! You sound so convincing Marik, I almost started to believe in what you were saying. And what do you guys know about this? Neither one of you are tied down to a women. Neither one of you are being forced to marry someone you don't love let alone even met before."

"Well I wish I could say I feel for you but…. Sucks to be you your highness." Chuckled Bakura.

"Well you two were a huge help… Thank you so much!" yelled Atem as he began to storm off away from hi two laughing friends.

"Hopefully she will be hot! That's all we can hope for you!" yelled Bakura as the two snickered together at the unfortunate situation of their closest friend.

The three went off their on their separate ways thinking that there was no way that they would ever settle down or find a woman that could ever get them to give up their ways, little did they know, change was headed their way.


	6. Chapter 6

**Merry Christmas Everyone! I hope all of you who have been following along with the story are enjoying it so far. This is my first crack at writing fanfiction. I have always enjoyed reading it but never got into the whole writing bit. But! Here I am! I am writing this for my own enjoyment but it is always nice to know that there are other out there enjoying my story as well so I would love to get some more followers and reviews from my readers! I want to know if you are enjoying the story! Let me know where you think it should go or what you are really enjoying specifically about the story! This story has a long way to go still but I hope some of you will ride this one out with me! I will be posting Chapter 6 here on Christmas and then I probably won't get another chapter up until after the New Year. So, Happy Holidays and see you in 2016!**

The trip was not an easy one to say the least. The four girls were exhausted. They were out of food and out of water. However, after many days and nights of restless travel, the four girls finally made it to Egypt. However, they did so unsuccessfully without anyone getting hurt. The princess was not allowed to leave the palace too often so this trek to Egypt was far too much for her to handle. The princess was no weakling but she had never had to do anything like this before in her life. The sheer heat from the sun was enough to wear anyone out. Throughout the entire journey Joey never let onto where or why they were headed in the direction they were going in.

"Joey?"

"Yes Ryou?"

"You still have not told us what we are doing in Egypt. Why were we sent here? Surely there were closer cities in which to hide the princess?" asked a very curious Ryou who was the most logical in the group and tended to do a lot more thinking before jumping into action. Thus, not knowing the plan or why they were heading in the direction they were was bothering her. Ryou and Malik had been left in dark when it came to the reasoning behind the trip to Egypt. All the two girls knew was that King Alexander had a pact with Pharaoh Aknamkanon that if their kingdom were ever in a crisis that the palace in Egypt could be their safe haven.

"All will be revealed in due time. However, for the safety of the princess I must keep the truth between only a few. I am sorry for keeping you in the dark but I will give you a story to go by as soon as I bring King Alexander's message to the pharaoh and work everything out with him. I sent the letter ahead of us so the pharaoh should already know that we are coming." Answered Joey

"Well alright but you better tell us as soon as you can cause I do not like this whole keeping secrets thing. And what are we going to do about Ash? She's been out for quite some time, we need to get her to see a healer as soon as we get into the city. As soon as she wakes up we will have to tell her what's going on."

"Alright well I can let you two in on a few things. For one, we are going to Egypt because Aknamkanon and Alexander are good friends and have made deals to help one another when in need."

"Yes, yes, we know that already. Get to the new information already."

"Alright, alright already. As of late, Alexander and Aknamkanon have made another deal with one another, such deal involves our Ash her and the Pharaoh's only son, Prince Atem."

"Wait! I think I know where this is going…. Oh dear" piped up Ryou.

"You got it Ryou. Prince Atem is the suitor that her parent's arranged for her to marry. Both rulers came to a combined decision that the two would marry and join their Kingdom's together, but as far as I know Ash didn't listen long enough to her parents to find out her fiancé's name let alone where he is from, so both of you keep your traps shut about the whole situation. It will be hard enough for Ash to adapt to living in Egypt and hiding her identity, the last thing she needs is to see the person she is supposed to marry traipsing around the palace, probably treating her like crap because she will be dressed as a servant." All the girls knew that it would be culture shock for their friend. Ashtianna was nowhere near what you would call a stuck up princess. She was never interested in fortune or status. She loved her trips to the markets and mingled with all the people who lived in her kingdom. But Joey, as well as the other girls, knew that not all royals were as accepting to commoners and slaves as Ashtianna was. They would have to warn the princess of this before turning her into a handmaiden. The girls decided that once they were at the palace they would come up with a story to tell both the princess and the citizens of Egypt. The group was quiet for the rest of their ride to the palace. They girls were not far from Egypt and were in front of the palace within a couple hours. Once they arrived just outside the palace gates the guards were on high alert and stopped the group from going any further.

"Halt! Who goes there?" cried the main gurad.

"Josephine Wheeler, here to see the pharaoh by order of King Alexander and Queen Layla of Greece. Please inform the pharaoh that we have arrived and we have a maiden that is ill and needs to be looked at as soon as possible." Ordered Joey.

The guard took the information and ran towards the throne room to inform the pharaoh and he arrived back within minutes of his departure panting as he halted to a stop in front of the 4 girls.

"The pharaoh asks that Josephine please join him in the throne room and for the others to take the one who is ill to be looked at by one of the healers. I will show you the way. Please follow me."

"See! I told you he was waiting for us!... uh I mean, um thank you for being so quick. If you don't mind, we need help carrying our sick friend?" One of the other guards walked over to the horse that Ashtianna was rested on and picked her up bridal style and started heading into the palace.

"Malik, you go attend to the horses and make sure everything is in order. Ryou, you go with Ash to the healers and I will go see the pharaoh. Whatever you two do, do not talk to anyone about who you are until I have talked to you about what our story is. Got it?" whispered Joey to the other two girls.

Both girls nodded and were on their way. Unbeknownst to the four girls and the guards someone had been watching the entire scene go down. _Well isn't this interesting?_ _We have some new blood in the palace…. Some very interesting new blood indeed._ His eyes wandered over to stranger in the pure white cloak and from what he could see where he was seated, matching hair with a beauty that intrigued him like no other ever had. _Well what do we have here? Hmmmm I might have to investigate this further._ And with a swift flip of his cape he jumped down off the palace walls to do some more investigating.

Joey followed the first guard to the throne room where the pharaoh awaited her. Upon entering the palace Joey could not help but to stare in awe at the beautiful art work and hieroglyphics painted on the walls. Everything was in golds and reds in such a grand fashion. Joey was completely zoned out when she happened to bump right into something… or someone.

"ooooof" Joey hit the ground hard. She and the person that she had collided with hit the floor with a little less grace than a hippo belly flopping into a river.

"Hey! Watch where you're going bub! Could you not see me walking?" cried out an already irritable Joey from her seated position on the floor. And that was when Joey lifted her head for the first time since going down and was met with the most gorgeous ice blue eyes she had ever seen.

"You would be best to watch your step and your tongue mutt." Said Seto, adding emphasis to "mutt". Seto slowly got to his feet where he then continued to look and talk down to the blonde on the ground. "I am High Priest Seto. Care to re-think your last statement?" Said Seto with a growl added to the end of his sentence which brought Joey out of the trance that she was in quite quickly. _No one called her a mutt!_ Joey scrambled to get to her feet before uttering another word.

"No actually, I wouldn't. I believe how I spoke and the words I chose were prefect for present company." Answered Joey with a half smirk creeping up her face as she stared at the tall lanky man that she had just barreled over. Seto growled even more and muttered some profanities under his breath as he pushed past Joey.

 _Damn stupid girl. Who does she think she is? Does she not know who I am? Well, if she is going to be in the palace for a long period of time I will make sure learns her place. Not bad looking though…. For a mutt that is…._

"What? No response!? That's what I thought!" yelled Joey to the man who was now well in the distance from where they had collided not town minutes ago. After he was gone Joey was left standing in the middle of the hallway in complete shock

 _Ooooh I cannot believe that guy! What a complete bastard! As if for a second there I thought that he was good looking._

With Joey being so caught up in her thoughts of the rude priest she failed to see the first guard come up behind her again.

"Miss Josephine?"

"Ah yes, I'm coming. Sorry about that." Answered Joey as she continued to follow the guard. _Keep it together Joey. This is serious._

Joey was at a loss of words when she entered the throne room. This throne room was twice the size of the throne room in the palace in Greece. Joey made sure not to stare too long as she knew that there were things that had to be done and done quickly. As Joey looked straight ahead she was headed towards a man sitting on a golden throne, elevated by a set of stairs. When Joey reached the bottom of the stairs she knelt down on one knee and bowed her head in respect.

"My Lord Pharaoh, thank you for seeing me so quickly."

"It is no problem Lady Josephine. Please rise we have much to discuss." The pharaoh made his way down the stairs to where Joey was standing so that they could speak in hushed tones.

"Have you spoken to anyone since arriving at the palace?" asked the pharaoh.

"No, I told both my comrades to speak to no one until I could get back to them. And of course the um… princess…. Is the one who is sick and she is not conscious at the moment. I will speak to her when she awakens."

"Oh dear, I hope the young girl will be alright. Now please, tell me exactly what has happened to your kingdom."

Joey and the pharaoh stood in, what looked like, almost complete silence for quite a long time while Joey went through the events of the last few days.

"Oh My….. Well, King Alexander was right to send you and the princess to Egypt. We shall make sure to keep her safe. I fear though that we should not reveal her true identity as it could get out and Dartz will make his way here to retrieve her."

"I agree my Lord. I was thinking…. Only myself, The King and Queen of Greece and your lordship know that Ashtianna and Atem are arranged to be married. What if we were to tell people that we are the princess's hand maidens sent to the palace early on before her so that we may get acquainted with the palace and set everything up to her liking for her arrival? Ashtianna was not to arrive to Egypt for another two months. Two months should be plenty enough time to wait out Dartz and his evil plans for our Kingdom and hopefully he will give up in looking for her. Malik, Ryou and myself can act as servants and we shall disguise the princess as a head hand-maiden, that way she is still considered somewhat noble which will cover up the fact that she will have a room in the palace. We will never name our princess but just refer to her as 'her highness'. You can place us anywhere you like in the palace so that we can be of service to you while we are here. The only thing I ask is that the princess's physical identity stay hidden. I would also like Ashtianan to stay unaware that the so called princess that Atem is to be married to is actually her. I just think it would be easier on her. We will just tell her that the princess we are serving is someone else entirely."

"I think you have come up with a wonderful plan Miss Josephine. My son does not know that he is marrying the princess of Greece nor does he know her name which will make this work perfectly. All the two royals know is that they were arranged to marry someone but not exactly who."

"Please my Lord, Call me Joey. I am sure there will be no problems. I also think that there is a very slim chance that the prince and princess will every lay eyes on one another so there should be no trouble." Answered Joey

"Very Well, Joey. Then it is settled, I will explain to my people in the palace that you four are the princess's Ladies in Waiting. We will tell them that the princess wanted to send you here early to get everything ready for her arrival. You may keep your names as I doubt anyone will recognize your names but Ashtianna will have to change her name."

"Does calling her just 'Ash' work your highness?" asked Joey

"Yes that should do just fine. I will send the servants to make up four rooms for you and the other ladies. To help with your disguise I will also make sure that there are new clothes for each of you waiting in your room."

"Thank you your highness. Now if you do not mind I need to go check on the other girls and see if Ashtia— Ash, has woken up yet. I will be sure to tell them all of the plan we have put in place."

"Very well Joey, we shall be seeing each other around the palace."

Joey then took her leave to go check on her friends. As soon as Joey left the pharaoh's queen, Queen Nefra, walked into the throne room.

"What was that all about my dear?" asked the Queen.

"Ah darling. That was just one of the Grecian princess's ladies in waiting. Four of her ladies were sent early to prep for her arrival in two months' time. I was just informing them of sleeping arrangements and their duties." Informed the King.

"Ah, alright then. The princess needed to send someone two whole months before her arrival?" questioned the Queen.

"She wanted them acquainted with the palace and the people so that she was not coming in completely blind. I do not blame her. It must be scary moving away from the only home she has ever known to marry a man she has never met."

"This is true. Well alright then, I will see to it that the ladies are adjusting well. I will send Mai and Mana to check on them."

Queen Nefra kissed her husband's cheek and left the throne room.

 _I do not like lying to my wife but I must do this to keep the princess safe. Speaking of the princess, I hope I get to meet the girl sometime soon, she is my sons intended after all, and the future Queen._


	7. Chapter 7

**I do not own anything in this story except for Princess Ashtianna.**

 **Hope you are all having a wonderful holiday break. I know I am not looking forward to going back to classes in January. Well I hope you enjoy the next chapter installment! Also, I will be changing this story to Mature for future chapters. If that is not something that you like to read then please don't. ENJOY! Happy 2016!**

"WHERE IS SHE!?" yelled a very angry and fed up Dartz. He continued to pace back and forth in front of his new throne which he had fashioned in his colors, blue and white. Dartz spared no time in changing everything he could in the castle to make it more his own. He had tried to lock the King and Queen in the Dungeons but some of the guards, who now pledged their allegiance to King Dartz, persuaded him otherwise as to avoid angering the citizens of Greece more than they already were.

"We are sorry your Kingship, It seems as though the princess has fled the city with a few others to accompany her. No one saw which way they headed and even someone did see… no one is giving up any information."

Dartz was fuming…. _How could she get out of the city…. I was so close… She was in his grasps… the crown was in his grasps…. I can still take over the throne but those dammed village people will never accept me without the princess at my side. I must have her… I will not rest until I have her back in this city and in my arms where she belongs… She is mine and no one else shall what is mine…._

"Well keep looking! You will not rest until the princess is found and brought back safely to Greece." Yelled Dartz to the Captain of the Guard.

"Yes your lordship! Right away!" yelled the guard as he hurried out of the throne room to continue the search party for the lost princess.

"I swear! I am surrounded by a bunch of imbeciles! I should just go out and look for her myself!"

"Now, now cousin do not jump to such rash measures. You need to stay here and run your glorious kingdom that you have now acquired."

"Ah Otogi, my dear cousin. I am pleased that you have arrived to see my wonderful new Rule over this godforsaken kingdom. I assure you I am on my way to whipping it into shape."

Otogi was another Noble from another smaller Kingdom between Greece and Egypt but he was cast out because he did not follow the same beliefs and values of those who were in command at the time and he tried to over throw them without prevail. He found refuge with his cousin Dartz and vowed to help Dartz in any way he could to get what he wanted. Otogi is a handsome young man. He has long black hair which he pulls into a ponytail, leaving a few strands to fall down on the sides of his face. He was long and slender but quite muscular. He has striking green eyes that made almost any woman fall for him almost instantly. He was definitely a ladies man but he was stopped in his tracks once by the Lady Serenity who now lived in Egypt. He tried very hard to gain her affections but failed in all his attempts. After he failed at that he became even worse when it came to using women for sex and pleasure and then just throwing him out on the street.

"I believe every word Dartz. Nothing has ever stopped you from getting exactly what you want,"

"Yes…. Except one insolent little girl…." Said Dartz through gritted teeth

"The princess you mean? I have never even seen the young princess. I remember meeting her when she was much younger but I have not seen her since."

"She is a sight to behold now Otogi I assure you. I have never seen a creature so ravishing. Her skin is a light caramel and every time I see her it hurts me not to run my hands all over the softness of it. And she has the biggest most gorgeous green eyes you will ever see. Not to mention the figure on her… my god what I would do to run my hands all over those sweet, sweet mounds of hers….. ugh I am sorry my friend….she just does things to me. The only problem with her is she wants nothing to do with me."

"She sounds like a real beauty. I cannot wait to meet this princess of yours."

"Yes I would love for you to meet her if only these dimwitted soldiers could find her. I have no idea where she would have gone. Alexander will not give me any information on who his allies are. At least if I knew that I could pin point where she may have been taken to hide."

"Alexander had many allies. I am still welcome in most palaces in his allied kingdoms. I could start a solo search for the princess. As of yet no one knows that you and I are in this together so no one will suspect me when I arrive and if they are hiding the princess their guards will be down."

"Yes I think that would work out quite nicely. Thank you friend. No one understands me but you. Go now, bring my princess back to me. If you find anything send for me and I may come to pick up my prize myself." Both men smirked.

"As you wish…. Your highness."

"Ah now that has a nice ring to it. Go now."

"I will report back as soon as I know anything." Otogi turned on his heel, flipping his robes behind him, exiting the throne room. Once Dartz was alone he took his seat on his new throne. Nothing was going to stand in his way… Nothing.

Back in Egypt

"Hey Atem! I hear your dearly betrothed sent some of her dolls to the palace already. Shit you haven't even met the girl and she is moving right on in haha." Atem was sitting in the scroll room going over some documents that he was supposed to look at a week ago. Although he was mainly doing it so that he could avoid everyone else in the palace. _So much for my peace and quiet….._

"Yes Marik I know, I know….."

"Haha this princess must be a real stuck up bitch to have to send her maidens to inspect her new home 2 months before she even arrives."

"Yes, yes, I know."

"I heard the girls are pretty good looking too. I know I wouldn't mind taking a crack at one of them, seeing how they won't be going anywhere anytime soon."

"I myself saw them arrive. There are four of them but they were all wearing hooded cloaks so I did not get a good look at any of them. One of them was not well though it seemed." Chimed in a very calm Bakura. This caught Atem's attention right away.

"You saw them?"

"Yes they arrived on horseback this morning."

"…. So this is real…. She is really coming? I really have to marry the princess….."

"Yes Atem. This is very real. You should be honoured that you get to marry someone of such power. You will unite our kingdoms in marriage and peace shall remain throughout the land." Piped in Seto as he rounded the corner, joining in on the guy's conversation.

"Ah Seto, how nice it is to see you and your logical and opinionated thoughts." Huffed an irritated Marik. Marik never thought to highly of the High Priest and everyone knew it.

"Yes, well, someone has to be around here. I am sure you will have a lovely bride in the princess. Her maidens however I have a severe distaste for already." Atem' eyes bulging out of his head at that last comment

"You met them already!?"

"Well I met one. That mutt has a real mouth on her…. Doesn't know when to shut up if you ask me."

"Well, well, well. Someone standing up to big man Seto. I bet that had to hurt….. or… you finally met your match…. Is Seto a little flustered from his latest encounter?" Seto faltered a bit after Marik's comment.

"Oh Please, like that mutt could ever match up to me. She is nothing but a simple maid." Marik smirked.

 _Oh that definitely got under his skin… I may have to find this maiden that has seemed to frazzle the high priest so much…_ "Whatever you say Seto." Seto growled under his breath.

"Alright enough guys. They are here and there is nothing we can do about it." Yelled Atem, gaining the other three men's attention. "I have had enough of all your arguing. I came in here for some peace and quiet. Now if you don't mind I am going to find that peace and quiet again elsewhere. Excuse me." Atem got up from his seated position and left the library to try and find his head.

"Atem! Don't forget we have a meeting in an hour! Don't be late!" yelled Seto. All he received was a hand wave in the air from Atem as he continued to walk away. "Atem needs to get past this whole arranged marriage and starting acting responsible."

"Alright you jackass. I don't see anyone pushing you to marry someone you don't love or even know. None of us can even begin to imagine what he is going through. Not only will this stuck up brat be his wife but she will be our future queen."

"Ah Marik, you have such a way with words."

"Ah yes well you know me, always speaking in turn and with an eloquent tongue." Set growled yet again at Marik's complete disregard for his status.

 _I have had enough of this. I don't have to take this from anyone, let alone this scum._

Seto was about to retaliate when a guard entered the scroll room, stopping Seto from going any further.

"High Priest Seto. My lord you have been summoned to the Pharaoh's chambers. He wishes to speak with you about something urgent." Informed the out of breath guard. He had obviously run the entire way there and was completely run down.

"Thank you, you are dismissed….. You're lucky this time Marik…" Seto made a sharp turn and left Marik, Bakura and the one guard in the scroll room. Both Marik and Bakura burst out laughing as soon as the high priest was out of ear shot.

"Can you believe him? Ha! He thinks he is so high and mighty. Man he needs to loosen up a bit."

"I do agree with you. He is very high strung for someone so young." Both men could not stop laughing until the guard who had not left yet spoke up.

"Excuse me Marik. The pharaoh has requested that you head to the training grounds to work with a new recruit."

 _Hmmm I wonder what this could be about…_ "Alright, thank you. I shall head over there right now."

Both the guard and Marik headed their separate ways, leaving only Bakura in the scroll room.

 _It seems I am alone again… Maybe this is a good time to do a little recon on our new visitors… maybe run into the one with the white hair…._

Elsewhere in the palace….

"Malik! Ryou!"

"Joey! There you are! How did the meeting with the pharaoh go?"

"The meeting went fine. Everything should be in place now. We are acting as the prince's intended's handmaidens. The story is that the Princess sent us two months before she is to arrive to wed the prince to make sure everything is in order for her before she arrives. We are never to call her the Grecian princess, just 'princess' as the prince still does not know who exactly he is marrying so if we can keep that a secret from him that would be ideal. I am sure he will find out soon enough that he is supposed to marry princess Ashtianna but as long as he never finds out that "Ash" is actually Ashtianna and that he never says anything to her along those lines we should be okay. The less those two know the better."

"I just do not understand why we cannot tell the princess and prince." Asked Ryou

"It is not them that I worry about. If they were to know it is fine but I fear that if they found out they would let their guards down and someone else would figure out who Ash really is and somehow the information would get back to Dartz."

"Oh… I see…. I guess that makes sense."

"Look you two get Ash up and make sure she is feeling alright. I was supposed to meet up with the Pharaoh again to meet his high priest. Apparently I will be working with him closely."

"Oooooh not too close though, right Joey?" smirked Malik as she teased her friend.

"Alright, alright you two. I will see you later. Get her lazy bum out of bed! She should be fine now." Huffed Joey as she turned to head off to go meet the pharaoh again and this so called High Priest…. _Hmmm High Priest? Why does that sound familiar?_


	8. Chapter 8

**I do not own anything in this story except for Princes Ashtianna.**

 **Enjoy this next installment! We finally get to see some romance blooming!**

Ashtianna woke with Ra that morning. As her eyes fluttered open she found herself in a strange bed with strange sheets… in a very strange yet beautiful and grand bedroom.

 _Where am I? Ugh and why does my head feel like it was just pounded on by a million rocks all at once?_ Thought Ashtianna to herself as she sat up in bed holding the front of her forehead, hoping that in doing so, some pain would be relieved. Ashtianna picked up one of the pillows and hugged it tightly, she felt so lonely as everything was starting to set in, everything that had happened to her in the last week. She missed her home… her bed…. Her parents, oh her parents. She prayed and hoped with all her heart that her parents were alright. She needed to get out of there, to escape, for even as a princess of Greece she had had more freedom than what she had now. She couldn't bear the way her former 'intended' husband had treated her, and the way he took over her beloved kingdom.

 _Just be happy you got out of there when you did Ash._

She also knew that she would be eternally grateful to her three friends who risked their lives to keep her safe and Pharaoh Aknamkanon who had obviously gone out of his way to make her feel at home by the looks of the room that she was now situated in… She couldn't bear it anymore. For some reason the room that she had been given was making her upset and she needed to get out of there. Ashtianna did remember briefly about her conversation with Joey on the identity that she was to take on while at the palace. She was still unsure of why they were in Egypt but if the pharaoh was willing to keep her safe from Dartz she would do no complaining. Ashtianna went over to the bathing room to freshen up before leaving to explore a bit more of the palace. The water felt so nice on her skin after not being able to bathe for quite a few days. One she was done bathing she went to find some suitable clothing to wear.

"Hmmmmm I don't have anything to wear except for what I came here in and if I am supposed to be undercover as a servant then that will certainly not work, I wonder…. Ah here, looks like Joey was already on top of this." Laying on a chair in the corner of the room was a set of plain beige robes and a pair of brown sandals. Ash put on her new clothes which were quite plain but she needed to get used to that. She also was not used to being so covered up.

 _I look like a priest in training…. The only thing you can see is my hands and my eyes… oh well, it's only for a little while. At least my eyes are one of my best features. Wait… what am I thinking?….there wouldn't be a point in looking nice here anyways because I am pretending to be someone I am not anyways and I guess technically… I am engaged….._

Ashtianna sighed and decided that there was nothing she could do about it now and decided to go do some exploring before anyone else got up. Ashtianna made her way through many different corridors and hallways until she finally found her way to the palace garden.

 _Perfect! I can actually relax and be alone with my thoughts._

The garden was absolutely breathtaking. It was full of lush greenery and many different types of flowers. In the centre of the garden there was a swing attached to one of the larger trees and a beautiful running fountain. Ashtianna went straight for the fountain, sitting on the edge of the water's edge, twirling her delicate fingers through the cool spring. _This place is amazing! How could anyone leave this garden? I could spend all day in here…. It reminds me so much of my garden back home…._

"I might as well get used to this… by the sounds of it I may never see my garden again." Ashtianna sighed and as she began to get up from her seated position. She didn't get half way around before she found herself running into the arms of a complete stranger. Ashtianna thought she was going into the drink but the person that she apparently ran into was a lot stronger and had better balance then she did. The back of her head barely skimmed the water's edge before she was lifted back up to a seated position.

"Excuse me, miss…?"

When she looked up, a striking young man was there, looking down at her. Ashtianna let out the tiniest of gasps although the young man did not notice as her mouth was covered with the robes she was given to wear. She noted that his eyes were a bright crimson color. Truth be told, she thought his eyes were the most gorgeous eyes she had ever laid her own eyes on. She noted that he had a well-built tanned structure as his toned arms wrapped around her, keeping her from falling into the water. _His hair, oh his hair! It is three colors in one!_ His hair was the most unique part to him. It was... crazy! It seemed to be defying gravity. It spiked up in different colors! The back tips seemed to be magenta, with black colored hair making up a big portion of his hair in the middle and the rest of his hair was blond. His bangs were like blond lightning bolts and some of his blond strands were shot up into the air, defying gravity once again! _How on Earth did he get hair like that?_ He was pretty attractive. She had met her share of attractive men before, trying to woo her with their looks, gifts and riches, but none of them looked anything like this young man right here. Her heart began to beat faster and faster and for the life of her she could not muster any noises for a very long time but somehow got a full sentence out.

"uh…. Um… H..hello! I am so sorry for my clumsiness and knocking you down. I apologize, please forgive me!" sputtered Ashtianna

Atem was surprised to say the least by the woman he was currently holding over the fountain. One of the first things he noticed about her was her striking green eyes…. They were a brilliant emerald green and seemed to sparkle in the daylight sun. _Those eyes…. I've never seen eyes so beautiful in my entire life_. She was attractive. Very attractive. No, she was gorgeous! It was amazing to Atem how beautiful she seemed to him when all he could see was her eyes. She seemed quite petite as he seemed to use little effort to keep her from falling in but it was hard to tell as she was covered in fabric from head to toe. The only other thing he could see was one small golden-brown strand of hair that snuck its way out of the covering of her hood. She was gorgeous, no doubt about it, but when she opened her mouth to speak; his opinion of her only heightened.

"Here let me help you up. Tell me, miss, what is your name?" he asked her upon seeing her lift her head.

For a moment, Ashtianna had trouble finding her voice again. "Um….my name? My name. Oh! My name is Asht – I mean just Ash. My name is Ash." She stumbled out. _Wow, good one Ash, real smooth. He probably thinks your some weirdo now._ Ashtianna had never been in a situation like this. Most of the men she met were through planned meetings her parents set up and there was no chance of anything like this every happening. This man seemed to be completely different.

"Ash…What a lovely name.… I don't think I've ever seen you around the palace before. Are you new?" Atem complimented her while wearing a warm smile. _Her voice! I don't think I have heard a voice like hers._ A blush began to rise in Ashtianna's pale cheeks.

"Um yes, I am new here. I actually just got here today with a couple other maidens." Answered Ashtianna with the only answer she could come up with because Joey had yet to tell her what their back story would be while they were staying in Egypt.

"That's wonderful. You wouldn't be one of the four maidens that were sent here to ready the princess's chambers and scout out the palace for her arrival in two month's? asked Atem.

 _The what? Hand maidens? Huh? Oh! This must be what Joey told everyone!_ "Um Yes! The princess – yes – she sent us here early to make sure everything was ready for her when she arrives." _I wonder what princess he is talking about._

"Ah yes well I hope the four of you are able to find your way around the palace with ease. If you are ever in need of help I could give you a tour of the palace."

"That would be wonderful and very helpful – Um – Thank you… um?" _Oh no I didn't even ask him for his name! How stupid of me!_

 _Shit! She wants my name! "_ Um my name is At – um my name is Yami. _Yami? Why on earth would I lie to her? She is bound to find out eventually._

"Yami." Said Ash out loud as a smile spread across her face. "Well it is very nice to meet you Yami." Atem breathed a huge sigh of relief as his lie seemed to have worked.

"It is nice to meet you as well Ash. I see you have found your way to the palace gardens. Do you like what you see? Asked Atem.

"Oh it is absolutely beautiful! It reminds me so much of my garden back home. I could spend my entire day out here." This answer surprised Atem because at any point that he brought a woman into the garden in the past they would always become bored quite quickly or would react badly to all the smells. This lovely girl here was completely different and he definitely liked it.

"Really? Well I am glad you like it. You are welcome to come to the garden whenever you like." Answered Atem, smiling towards the petite young girl who was still in her arms. "I come here whenever I can to avoid work or just relax and get away for a while and I would love to have some company." Atem added in that last bit hoping to spark some interest in the girl so that he could see her again and get to know her more.

"Well thank-you very much. I appreciate that."

Both smiled at each other without breaking eye contact for what felt like hours but then Atem realized he had been called away from his peace and quiet in the garden to meet with Seto again was on his way to meet up with him before he ran into Ash. _Ra Dammit! If I am late Seto will kill me._

"Well, Ash, I hope we get to meet again sometime soon. Make sure to keep those eyes up so that no clumsy fool knocks you over again." said Atem as he flashed Ashtianna a bright heart melting smile. Atem turned and headed off in the direction he was going before bumping into the beautiful mysterious woman.

 _What the heck just happened? Why does my heart feel like it's about to burst out of my chest?_ Ashtianna was not new to meeting young men but no one had ever made an impression on her like he just had. "Yami". Said Ashtianna out loud to herself. It was a nice name. Ashtianna continued her walk through the garden with a slight hop in her step that wasn't there before.

 _Ash. Hmmm. Those eyes…. Snap out of it Atem. You're engaged to be married to her princess. You should not be feeling like this. Plus, you haven't even actually seen what she looks like. She may be hideously deformed which is why she covers up….._ Atem tried to convince himself but he knew deep down that there was no way that someone so sweet could be anything but beautiful.

"Ash… Ash? Are you there? It's Malik and Ryou. Will you let us in?" cried out Ryou from the other side of the princess's bed chambers. "That is odd. I talked to the healer and she said that Ash was absolutely fine and was just tired from heat exhaustion and that she should have awakened relatively quickly." Ryou was now concerned for her dear friend.

"Oh she is just sleeping in, being the princess she truly is. Here let's go in." chimed in Malik. Ryou did not like this plan one bit.

"Oh Malik we probably shouldn't barge into the princess's room." Whispered Ryou.

"Oh calm yourself Ryou! You're such a worry wort! See there's nothing to wor –….. um…."

"Malik? What is it?"

"Do you want the good news or the bad news first?" asked Malik.

"Oh dear…. Um the good news?" answered Ryou with caution.

"Well the good news is no one is going to be mad at us for barging into the princess's room"

"Well how do you know that?"

"Well, you see, no one will ever know we were in here….. because the bad new is….. Ash isn't here!"


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi everybody! Sorry for my delay on chapters! I started a new fan fic! A Frozen/Rise of the Guardians Crossover which I am very excited for! But do not worry, I have not forgotten about this story. School has gotten in the way a bit so I apologize if chapters are not coming in as fast as you would like.**

 **This story is only just starting and I can promise you that we have a long way to go! I just like taking my time in introducing all the characters and setting up everything properly. Plus I do not wish for anything to move too quickly with our main Characters.**

 **Please leave reviews! I will not be adding the next chapter on till I get some reviews! I want to know that people are enjoying reading this story as much as I am enjoying writing it. If people aren't liking it then I will probably just leave it and move onto trying something else.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything. I do own Princess Ashtianna.**

 **Enjoy!**

Chapter 9:

"Enter" boomed a loud powerful voice from the other side of the double wide doors that blocked off the pharaoh's study from the rest of the palace. With a hearty push forward, Joey entered into the spacious study with a firm notion in mind; _do whatever you have to so that the princess remains safe._ Looking forward Joey scanned the room and saw the pharaoh seated behind a large desk of sort with papers strewn across in every direction. However, there was also another person in the room

 _Hmm this must be the royal priest that the pharaoh was wanting me to meet._

Joey walked up towards the pharaoh's desk and lightly bowed her head. The man in question to the side of her was facing slightly away from her so she was unable to get a good look at his face.

"Ah Joey, Thank you for making your way here with such haste. I trust everything is in order with you and the other maidens in your group."

"Yes thank you your highness. Your hospitality has not gone unnoticed by any of us. And as we speak the princess should be waking up from her long journey. She was quite exhausted but she bounces back quite quickly. I do worry though that some subjects may become suspicious with the four of us staying in such lavish quarters as we are supposed to be but simple handmaidens."

"I do share your concern as well Joey but I would not feel right about putting the princess up in anything less than our best. Perhaps I can move her to one of our smallest guest spaces in the corner of the palace, that way there will be less possibility of anyone spotting her. There are also servants quarters attached to this room which we could spruce up a bit for yourself and the other two women. This way you stay out of sight but can still be near the princess to protect her."

"That will do perfectly your highness. Thank you."

"Think nothing of it Joey. The princess is after all my future daughter in-law." Answered Pharaoh Aknamkanon with a warm smile reaching to the corner of his eyes. But before Joey could answer him the two were interrupted by a loud cough to the left of her.

"Ah yes, Joey I would like you to meet one of my trusted servants. He aids me in all of my royal choices and is also head of tactics and battle plans. Miss Josephine Wheeler please meet High Priest Seto.

However, before the pharaoh even got to introducing the so called 'High Priest's name, Joey had turned to her left and was caught staring into those ice blue orbs from earlier on today. She was also able to get a far better look at him now that she was at his level. He had short brown hair that seemed to be very neatly kept. He was quite tall, definitely over 6 feet. He was wearing the regular priest robes but he had an extra blue sash that he wore. He also held a weird looking staff thing in her left hand that had the eye of Horus on it. She wasn't given much time to take everything in before her rage started to take over.

 _This guy!? This is the pharaohs High Priest! UGH! There is no way this arrogant, self-centred, jerk should have nay power here._

Joey was using everything in her power to stop her from launching and taking out the man standing in front of her. Her thought were masked quite well though with a stone face and a strong handshake.

"High Priest Seto. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Seethed Joey as she reached out to shake Seto's hand. Seto reached out his hand to meet the blonde's advancement.

 _You have got to be kidding me! This is the informant and right hand solider that is supposed to be in charge of keeping the princess safe! I will not work with a mutt like her._

"The pleasure is all mine I assure you Miss Josephine."

Both stood there for quite a while, neither one wanting to make the first move to break the contact. Finally, Pharaoh Aknamkanon piped in which broke the tension between the two and Seto let go of Joey's hand which surprisingly bugged Joey when the warmth suddenly disappeared.

"Now that you two have been properly acquainted, I am putting you two in charge of keeping the princess safe while also making sure that Princess Ashtianna and Prince Atem do not find out about one another and that they are the ones who are to be married. Have I made myself clear?" asked the pharaoh with a certain gruffness to his voice. He was obviously taking this whole situation very seriously.

"Of course." Both answering at the same time.

"Good. Now, we will be throwing a celebration at the end of the week to honour our four new guests because although you are taking on the appearance of simple servants, we will imply that you are still of high importance because you are the Princess's closest companions. Until this time I would like it if Ashtianna and Atem are kept apart. Miss Josephine, I will have some of the lady maids who serve my wife to move your belongings to the room we talked about earlier and they will help you all get re-settled. Seto, I need you to talk to Bakura and Marik about the whole situation as they may be working with Malik and Ryou being that they have similar jobs in our differing kingdoms. Now that everything is settled I need to get back to work to see if I can so anything to help Alexander and Layla in their time of need. You may go now."

The pharaoh simply waved them off and went back to looking through the papers that were all over his desk. Both Joey and Seto bowed their heads and exited the Pharaoh's study space. The double doors to study had just barely closed before both turned to each other with equalling amounts of anger and disgust.

"You!? You're the princess's Bodyguard? You're the one in charge of this whole thing?!" yelled Seto while still staying in hushed tones, not wanting to be overheard by anyone in the nearby vicinity.

"Yes, Yes I am. Is that really so surprising?" Huffed Joey as she crossed her arms across her chests, making everything push together, which gave Seto a decent look at her cleavage.

 _Get your mind out of the gutter Seto!_ Set fought back his original thoughts and pushed forward. "Yes it is quite surprising. I was expecting someone who I could actually communicate with, not someone with the obvious intelligence of a mutt." Barked back Seto as a slight smirk graced his lips.

 _That Bastard! Why does he continue to call me a Mutt! "_ Obviously your brain in so small and feeble that you completely forgot me telling you earlier that I AM NOT A MUTT! I am a high ranking official and body guard to King Alexander and Queen Layla and personal body guard to Princess Ashtianna! I take on jerks like you for breakfast."

"Well Miss Josephine." Started Seto as he heard a low growl come from the woman in front of him. "Since the Pharaoh wants us working together on this I recommend that you get your thick skull and get back to the issue at hand. I cannot use my time dealing with simple minds like yourself when I could be helping my kingdom to prosperity. If you will excuse me I have more important things to attend to" Seto turned away from a fuming Joey to head towards the scroll room but stopped momentarily to add one more thing. "Oh, and Miss Josephine. Try to cover up a bit more next time. You're obvious attraction towards me is something I do not have time for." And with that he continued on his way, round a corner so he was out of Joey's sight. All Seto could hear once he turned the corner was a frustrated, muffled scream coming from the blonde guard.

 _Humph, that will teach her to mess with Seto. Maybe working with the blonde mutt won't be too bad after all. She is quite entertaining._ Seto's thoughts wandered off as he went about his regular business.

Back where Seto had left Joey however, things were not calming down.

"UGH! I cannot believe him! Why I ought to punch that smirk right off his face the next time I see him. How dare he look at me in that way and then to COMMENT on it! AGH! I'll kill him!" Joey was too caught up in yelling profanities and cursing the High Priest that she didn't notice her two friends running up to her in a huff and out of breath until they yelled her name.

"JOEY!"

Joey was ripped from her murderous thoughts to her obviously distressed friends.

"What is it? Ryou? Malik? What's wrong? What happened?" questioned a now very worried Joey.

"We… have a… problem." Puffed out Ryou between breaths

"What do you mean a problem? Where's Ash?"

"That has something to do with the problem" answered Malik now that she had regained more of her breath loss. "We don't know where she is. We went to wake her up like you told us too but when we got in her room, she was nowhere to be found."

Joey thought that her heart literally stopped working for a good 5 seconds after Malik finished talking. All of Joey's biggest fears appeared after that sentence. _No! I cannot have lost her already! I had one job! Keep the princess safe…_ Joey's mind was racing a million miles a minute and she had no idea what to next. That is, until she heard a very familiar, melodious voice behind her voicing concern.

"Joey are you okay? Ryou? Malik? Why are you two all sweaty? And why does Joey look like she is having a heart attack?" questioned a very innocent looking Ash who had happened upon the three friends on her adventure to finding her room again.

"OH MY GOD! ASH!" All three girls yelled at the same time as the enveloped the small princess in a massive hug.

"Where were you? We looked everywhere for you! You weren't in your room when we came to wake you." Asked a very concerned Ryou.

"Yeah you scared us half to Death Ash! If I wasn't so happy to see you safe and sound I would kill you for making me worry so much!" added a far less gentler Malik.

"Don't EVER do that again! You hear me! When you do that you make our jobs really hard to keep you safe when we don't know where you are." Added Joey finally.

"I'm sorry girls. I did not mean to worry you. I just really needed to get out of that room. It felt so stuffy and I really just needed some fresh air. I promise you I went out of my way to not be noticed. I even put on these massive robes that were laid out for me so that no one would see what I look like."

"No that's good Ash. Good thinking. No matter, you're safe now. No harm, no foul. And it's not like you were out long enough to really talk to anyone or anything like that." Joey said with a deep sigh of relief. Her relief soon subsided when all she heard was silence from the young princess and wandering eyes that would not meet her own. "Ash? You didn't talk to anyone did you?" asked Joey with a very cautious tone.

….

"I met someone"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

"Oh no, please Ash, tell me you didn't reveal your true identity?" asked a very scared Joey

 _If she revealed her true identity, everything could be ruined. We would have to move her to a different location already!_

"Oh no I didn't say anything about who I was. I even told them that my name was Ash instead of using my real name." answered the princess. Joey thought the entire world was lifted off her shoulders in that moment.

"Oh thank the lord. Well then, who did you run into?" asked Joey

"Well he wasn't ugly. I'll tell you that much." Answered Ash with a slight blush forming in her cheeks.

"Ash… seriously? You've been awake for maybe an hour!" cried Joey

"Agh Joey… Lighten up! She's a teenage girl! Obviously cute guys are going to be her kryptonite! So!? Spill princess! What was he like?" asked a now very curious Malik.

"I'm sorry Joey…. I ran into him in the garden. He was very handsome…. He had the most unusual hair that spikes up in 3 different colors. He was very nice and sweet. He also had the most amazing crimson colored eyes…. Guys? You look like you saw a ghost."

All three of the other girls had gone stark white, and that's saying a lot when it comes to Malik as she is so tanned. All three girls knew what the crown prince looked like and that his most famous thing about him was his colorful head of hair and his smouldering red eyes. All three girls were thinking the exact same thing in that moment.

 _Shit_

Ryou finally broke the silence. "Ash, did this man tell you his name?"

"Yes he did! His name is Yami. He seemed hesitant to give it to me at first but he gave it to me eventually. He looked like he was a servant in the palace, albeit a very nicely dressed servant but he was just in plain clothes and only had a couple gold bands on his arms."

All three girls wiped their brows from the sweat that began to form there from the stress that their princess had just caused them.

"Oh Yami! Oh that's a nice name isn't it girls?" ask Ryou of the group, desperately trying to soothe the tension. Ryou, Malik and Joey all started nodding their heads in agreement. Ash just looked at the girls in complete awe. _Why are they being so weird?_

"Ooookkay. Well now that we all have that covered and know Yami's name can we move on now? Asked Ashtianna of her friends.

"Yes of course! Alrighty then! Um Yes! So I was just talking to Pharaoh Aknamkanon and he is moving us to a smaller guest bedroom in the corner of the palace where we will stay undetected by the other subjects in the palace. We both agreed that it would look odd if a couple of simple servants were set up in one of their most lavish guest rooms. We are still going to be in a big room with extra servant quarters for myself, Ryou and Malik so everything should be good now. We should probably head over there now to get settled in." Joey led the group out to the direction of the room that the Pharaoh had set aside for them.

As they came to their double wide doors at the end of the hallway they heard giggling coming from inside the room. All four women looked at one another with not a clue at what it could be. Malik and Joey weren't going to take any chances so they got their sword and dagger at the ready as Ryou pushed open the door. The group of women were not ready for what came next!

"AAAHHHH! You're here! FINALLY!" a short girl with crazy brown hair and green eyes came running at the girls and jumped into Joey's arms.

"Um can someone get crazy off me… please…. NOW!"

"I'm sorry! I did not mean to scare you off! My name is Mana! I work here at the palace! I am a personal servant to Queen Nefra, best friend of Prince Atem and magician in training! Nice to finally meet you!

"Don't mind Man dearies. She is a little too hyped up on sugar today. You must be Joey, Malik, Ryou, Oh and you must be Ash. Nice to meet you Sugar, my name is Mai Valentine. Of course you already met Mana and this right here is Lady Serenity. I am the head maid here at the palace along with Mana and Lady Serenity is a noble here but she prefers to hang out with us for reasons I cannot comprehend." Mai was a tall and very busty blonde. She had light lilac coloured eyes and fairly tanned skin. Her hair was similar to Joeys but Joey's was less curly than hers and was a bit shorter. She wore a white linen dress that tied up around her neck in a halter top fashion. She also wore a gold belt that wrapped around her waist and sandals that crisscrossed up her calves and tied up just below her knee. She was absolutely stunning. She looked to be a bit older than other girls however, 26 maybe.

"Excuse me!" piped up a beautiful auburn haired woman. She was dressed far more elegantly than the other two which made it obvious that she was a noble. Her hair was pulled up into a bun that sat right on the top of her head. She wore a flowy light yellow dress that went straight up and down from her chest to the floor. She wore gold bands on each of her arms and a thick golden plate necklace to match. She was quite short and not too tan which gave the impression that she was a noble from a different land. "I hang out with you two because you are actually fun to be around, unlike the other lady's in the palace. If I had to sit through one more wine and cheese night with Lady Anzu and Lady Vivian I might kill myself. Hi my name is Serenity, Nice to meet you all!"

"We moved all of your belongings from your previous room to this one. All of Ash's stuff is here in the main bedroom and Joey's, Ryou's and Malik's things are in the room to my left. You all have your own double bed and a separate bathing room from Ash!" Mana talked really fast. She was definitely the youngest of the three women. She had unruly brown hair, tanned skin, and light green eyes. She was also wearing the typical white linen dress but hers was cut short. She was also wearing some sort of cap that pointed out at the end, covering most of her head. The most prominent things about her was her infectious smile though. She never stopped smiling! "I hope you all like it here!"

"Uh…. Thank you?" Joey had no idea how to respond so Ash piped up.

"Yes thank you so much ladies! This is perfect. And if we have any other questions or concerns in the palace we now know exactly who to ask."

"No problem Sweetheart. Oh and we were told by the Pharaoh to bring new clothing for all of you. It looks like Ash has already found hers but we brought some for the rest of you."

"What the hell Joey! You never said I had to change what I was wearing! There is no way you would catch me dead wearing one of those white plain dresses!" complained a fairly frustrated Malik while holding up one of the dresses, inspecting every inch of it.

"I know Malik. I feel the same way you do. I don't even wear skirts let alone dresses but I'll get over it. We need to blend in here. SO suck it up and put on the dam dress." Growled Joey who was getting irritated with the whole day ad just wanted to go to bed already.

"Oh and it looks like Miss Ryou you should be fine with what you are wearing now. The white linen establishes us as servants so you can stay in what you are wearing now if you like." Piped up Mana as she was inspecting the new girls in front of her.

"Oh, well thank you. That would be much appreciated."

"Ugh! How is that fair!—"

"MALIK! Just go put on the freaking dress!" yelled Joey

"Alright, alright, alright, I'm going. No need to get your panties in a wad." Both Joey and Malik left the main room to get changed into their new uniforms.

"Sooooooo should I tell them now that I know who they are?"

"MANA!" yelled both Mai and Serenity at the same time.

"What!?"

Both Ash and Ryou shared looks expressing shock and fear. No one except the pharaoh and the High Priest were supposed to know exactly who they were.

Very timidly, Ryou asked the question that both girls desperately wanted to know. "What do you mean by telling us that you know who we are?"

"Oh well I know that you are Ryou Bakura, the famous light magician from Greece, the tall blonde one who is changing and seems to be in charge is Josephine Wheeler, basically step daughter to King Alexander and Queen Layla and the other blonde is Malik Isis, the famous horse whisperer, also known for her battles won in war. And of course you are Miss Ashtianna, Princess of Greece."

All jaws in the room had dropped and refused to close back up. Even Joey and Malik had entered the room to hear the tail end of the young girls' deceleration.

"Ho – How? Do you know? No one is supposed to know!"

"Oh I was trying out my magic one day and I accidentally transported myself into a vase in the pharaoh's study and he was having a discussion with Priest Seto about the whole situation."

"I cannot believe this! We have been here for less than 24 hours and our cover is already blown!" Joey could not take it anymore and she flopped herself back onto the king size bed in the main room with a hand resting over her forehead.

"I am really sorry! I promise I will not tell anyone! The only people I told was Mai and Serenity but they won't tell anyone either! I promise!" Mana was basically in tears now and had dropped to the floor in shame. Ash smiled at the young girl. She reminded her of herself only a couple years ago. She took off her veil and removed her hood.

"Hey don't worry Mana. We trust you. I know that you will keep this secret because my life depends on it. The last thing I want is for the wrong person to find out who I am as I would not want any harm to come to my new friends here in Egypt." Ash was now on the floor with her at her eye level, patting her back trying to sooth the young magician.

"Friends?" sniffled Mana as she looked up at the princess.

"Yes of course! Friends." Mana smiled back at the princess. Ashtianna was taken back when in one second flat Mana's arms were wrapped around her neck in a huge bear hug.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you! I promise that everything will be smooth sailing from here on out!" Mana let go of the princess and they both got up off the hard floor. That is when all of the women happened to look over at Malik.

"Malik! What did you do!?" Ryou had no other words for what she was seeing.

"What? I just did a little reconstruction of the dress. No big deal." Malik had gone and split the dress into two pieces. One that barely covered her breasts which allowed for ample cleavage and the other which barely covered one leg let alone two with a big slit on one side.

"UGGGHHH! Just leave it be! I do not want to deal with this today! If you all need me I will be retiring for the evening early tonight. Good night!" Joey stomped off towards the living quarters and slammed the door behind her.

"Hmph. I thought that was going to be far worse. Oh well! Better for me! If you don't mind, I am going to take this time to go back and check on the horses and maybe check out the armory. I will be back for dinner. We are in here for dinner correct."

"You bet hun! The pharaoh has requested that we keep you girls a little bit isolated for the first week so meals will be in your room. But you are welcome to roam the palace as you please. I am off to sewing room to create some more dresses for the queen but I will be back to bring you your meals around dinner time."

Both Malik and Mai left to do their own thing and Mana said that she had to go to her Magic class with Shimon. Ryou was a master magician and could not pass up the chance to go work with more magic so she followed after Mana. Serenity also had to get going as she was going to the market with her mother to go shopping. Which only left Ashtianna in the room.

 _Hmmmm what should I do? I could go back to the garden. It was really pretty. I could go see Star in the stables and see how she is doing….hmmm maybe I'll just go for a walk and see what happens. I probably shouldn't wander off after what happened last time but I'll get too bored staying in here. Well, a walk it is then._

Ashtianna pushed both double doors open and headed off in a random direction. She had no idea where she was going or what she would find. It was like her own little adventure.

 _Finally! A little bit of freedom in my life. Maybe this hidden identity stuff isn't so bad after all._


	11. Chapter 11

Hello Readers! I have a long one here for ya! Enjoy!

Chapter 11:

Atem was unsure of why Seto called to meet him. Knowing his cousin it would be nothing of importance but he would have to go anyway or he would be hearing from his father and he was the last person Atem wanted to deal with right now. Atem had avoided him since being told about his arranged marriage…

 _Oh shit… I bet this is about this stupid arrangement…. Leave it to my father to send Seto to do his dirty work for him_

Atem let out a low growl as he turned the corner to enter the scroll room where Seto asked to see him. Although he demeanor changed drastically when he saw the state that his cousin was now in. He seemed distressed and annoyed, throwing scrolls in every which way. He was also mumbling and swearing under his breath which was very odd for Seto has he always seemed so put together and stoic. Atem chuckled a bit while watching his cousin.

"Now dear cousin, what in Ra has got you up in such a panic?" asked Atem as he continued to enter the room, approaching the distressed Seto. Seto finally looked up from what he was doing.

"What took you so long?" asked Seto, avoiding Atem's first question.

"Oh you know, this and that… avoiding you with every chance I got." Chuckled Atem.

"Oh very funny…" grumbled Seto. "You know I did call you here to talk to you about important matters."

"Everything seems to be an important matter to you Seto."

"That's because I take my title and position seriously unlike some in the palace…."

"Just because I am not constantly in the scroll room going over our history and diplomacy or communicating with ally countries does not mean I do not take my position seriously. I just know that one day I will not have time to relax. Thus, I am using my time, while I still have it, wisely." Finished Atem, plastering a solid smirk on his face before continuing. "Now I will ask again, what on earth has upset you so much? If you answer me I will listen to all you have to say to me."

Seto did not dare look at Atem for what seemed like eternity. He just stared down at the document on the table in front of him. Without looking at Atem, Seto finally decided to give in and tell him.

"One of the new maidens…. Your father has me working closely with her as she is basically the princess's body guard. She is one of the rudest, outspoken, vulgar, ill-mannered women I have ever met. She disregards status and position and thinks she can do whatever she pleases. How can the pharaoh stick me with someone who refuses to listen or obey orders?! I just cannot stand her! She just annoys me so much!" Seto was yelling by the end of his rant, running out of breath and basically panting once he finished.

Atem had no idea what to do or say… He had never seen his cousin in state like this. Seto was always the calm, cool and collected one of the group. He expected this sort of outburst from Bakura or Marik but never from Seto. Then it donned on him….

"So this woman infuriates you?"

"Yes."

"She is disrespectful?"

"Yes!"

"She never listens to you?"

"Yes!"

"You find this woman attractive."

"YES!"… "Wait! No! ATEM!" Atem could no longer hold in his laughter. "You tricked me Atem! I do not find her attractive nor would I ever see her in that light."

"Sure, sure Seto. I believe you." Atem tried to keep it together but was unable to stop his laughter from continuing. He could not very well say he believed him with a straight face. All Seto could do was growl at his younger cousin. "So I'm assuming you like this girl because I have never seen you get so worked up before over one person. She must really be something to make you act like this."

"Ugh! I do NOT… I am not arguing with you on this anymore! I told you why I was annoyed and that is why, not because I am attracted to her in any way."

"Yeah, yeah okay Seto. I'll drop it. But I just think that you maybe have a thing for this woman seeing how she's the first woman who has ever had the gall to stand up to you. Hmm I'd like to meet this woman, she seems pretty fascinating."

"Whatever… Well I am sure you will meet her eventually as she is one of your fiancé's maids." Seto's smirk grew as he knew that with that comment that he had won. He knew that mentioning Atem's future bride would get him to shut up. Atem's smile was wiped from his face and a frown replaced it quite quickly. "Well I see the mention of her highness does not sit too well with you still. Atem you know you have no choice in the matter. I called you here by your father's orders to discuss the impending marriage and to inform you that we will be hosting her four handmaidens at a banquet at the end of the week. This is where you will be able to formally meet the women who will be tending to your future Queen." Atem was trying his hardest to block out Seto's insufferable speech about how he should act and how he should treat the women and how even though they are simple maids that they are very important to the princess. _Hmph… well at least the princess seems like a decent person to be treating her maidens with such respect…_ Atem's interest in the subject perked up a bit when Seto began talking about the four maidens individually. "Miss Josephine Wheeler is who I will be working with as she is apparently the princess's personal body guard. Although I cannot see how she could be of any assistance in any sort of physical altercation…. Stupid girl…..ugh never mind… as I was saying. Miss Josephine is her highness's personal bodyguard. Malik is the princess's personal dresser and dress maker, Miss Ryou is the princess's personal healer and personal beauty maid, and last is Miss Ash…" Of course this peaked Atem's interest in the entire conversation as he thought about the sweet young woman he had met in the garden a little while ago. "Miss Ash is her highness's best friend and closest ally. She is there for moral support and guidance. Miss Ash is who the princess trusts her life with."

"So this, "Ash" is close with her highness? How close?"

"I have been told that they are like sisters."

"Well I guess we will have to see about that. Now if that is all you needed to talk to me about then I would like to spend the rest of my day in peace without having someone telling me how I plan to live the rest of my life. Thanks."

"You are free to go. Just remember Atem, this is going to help our great Egypt thrive. Sometimes you have to do things for the better of your country. This selfless decision could make you one of the greatest pharaohs of your time."

"Did you ever stop once to think that I might not want to be pharaoh?" Hastily, Atem turned and removed himself from the scroll room.

 _Heck the princess doesn't seem like a horrible person and if she is anything like the young maiden I met earlier today then I should have nothing to worry about… I'm just sick of not being able to make my own decisions…._

Atem was brought out of his thoughts as he heard Seto call from the room before he was out of ear shot. "You should be grateful Atem…." And before Atem was full out of the room he turned to Seto, eyes full of scorn and unhappiness.

"I am grateful Seto…. But being grateful has nothing to do with me being pleased about it. I am grateful for the life I have been blessed with… I only wish that I could make some decisions of my own that go along with that life."

Nothing else was vocalised between the two cousins. Seto knew how Atem felt. Seto was groomed to be a priest from the time he was born. He did not have a say in his life and when his mother and father were taken from him he was forced to grow up far quicker when he had to take his father's place as Pharaoh Aknamkanon's high priest. The two men grew up with greatness forced upon them. Seto was just far better at hiding his discontentment with the way his life had turned out. Seto loved being a high priest but sometimes he did long for a little excitement in his life. Atem knew that Seto could sympathize with the young prince but he also he knew that he would never voice it out loud, so Atem left it at that and exited the room without so much of a good bye.

Marik was doing his regular rounds as he normally does while heading to the palace's training grounds to meet his new recruit. However, he was in no rush to get there so he took his sweet time. Everything was in its place and nothing was out of the ordinary….

It was so boring!

It was really starting to bug him. Deep down Marik was a trouble maker and he thrived off of chaos which was probably why he loved going into battle so much and the palace was anything but chaotic right now. The organized chaos, better known as war, was what Marik lived for. However, Egypt had been at peace for so long that Marik had seen little to no action. So Marik filled his days with honing his combat skills and making many midnight trips to see the dancers. The dancers loved when Marik came to visit and would do anything he asked for or wanted of them, but that was the problem. Marik wanted a challenge, he wanted someone to match him in every aspect of his life, including sexually. Compliant sex just was not fun for Marik.

"God! This place is going to be the slow, painful death of me if I'm not careful. I wonder where Bakura is, maybe he has something fun up his sleeve."

Just as Marik was about to go search for the white-haired devil, a flash of platinum blonde hair flashed out of the corner of his eye.

"That's something new."

Hiding behind the closest pillar, Marik strained his neck to get a better look at the new shiny thing in the palace. Just around the corner was the most beautiful, stunning blonde he had ever seen in his entire life. To be honest, she reminded him quite a bit of himself just in a female version. She was wearing the customary white linen dress that all the servants in the palace had to wear but she had somehow turned it into a two piece. Her white top barely covered her ample breasts as it wrapped around in a bandeau form. Her skirt sat just under her naval but instead if the skirt going straight down to the floor, she had taken it upon herself to cut a slit on the right side that went half way up her thigh.

"Mmmm What I wouldn't do to run my hands up and down those thighs….."

Then Marik noticed a slight glint near her thigh that had the slit. It was then that he realized that she had a small dagger strapped to her thigh.

 _What's this? What_ is _a servant girl doing with a dagger strapped to her leg for?_

Marik saw that the young woman was leaving and he decided to follow her. Marik stayed well within the shadows so that no one could see him but he always stayed close enough to not lose sight of the young woman. After what seemed like forever, Marik found himself in the palace stables.

 _Hmmm Interesting._

Marik peered around the corner of the stables to see the woman approaching one of the new stallions that had been a gift from an alliance group. The stallion was not trained and men had been trying for months to ride him with no prevail.

 _What are you going to do their beautiful?_

Marik knew that he should probably step in before the horse hurt the unsuspecting woman but something was holding him back from stopping her. The next thing that happened completely blew Marik's mind. The woman walked right up to the stallion like they had been best friends their entire life. She stood there, softly petting his nose. The horse whinnied in happiness and continued to let the woman near. Marik took his eyes off the woman and horse for 2 seconds to try and grasp what had just happened but when he looked back, she wasn't there. Before Marik could do anything he felt a sharp point poking at his neck.

"What the hell do you think you're doing watching me like that? Did I say that you were allowed to do that?" growled a fairly irritated Malik. Malik knew she was being followed the entire time but she was looking for the right moment to pounce.

Instead of being afraid of the now imminent danger pointed at his throat, Marik slowly took the blade between his fingers and guided it away from his neck.

"Well hello there." Said Marik with a smirk growing on his face. "This was not how I imagined our first meeting but I will take what I can get. My name is Marik. And what, may I ask, is your name my kitten?"

 _KITTEN!? WHY I OUGHTA!_

Malik quickly pushed the dagger back up near Marik's throat.

"Watch it creep! I don't really think you are in any position to be asking questions. And I AM NOT YOUR KITTIN!" growled Malik.

"Mhmmm you're even more attractive when you're angry" growled Marik back to the feisty female in front of him. "May I ask why you have a dagger strapped to your leg in the first place? Servants aren't supposed to have weapons on them….. You are a servant are you not?"

Malik froze on the spot.

 _Shit! He's right! I'm supposed to be under cover as a servant. Quick Malik think!_

"Well I am a servant yes…." Said Malik as she began to drop the dagger from Marik's neck. "But my Mistress allows me to carry this dagger….. In case…. In case slime balls like you try anything!" Finished Malik with a final huff as she strapped the dagger back onto her leg, hidden from any other prying eyes. Marik couldn't help himself watching as she opened up the slit in her skirt to put the dagger back. Her legs were tan and toned and had a small layer of sweat on her leg that made them shine and glimmer in the light of day. Without really thinking about it, Marik began to lick his lips.

"Hey buddy! I'm up here! The princess does not stand for men treating women like possessions and play toys."

"Well isn't that nice of the princess…. So you're one of the princess's handmaidens then….. I knew that I had never seen your beautiful face in the palace before today….. I would have noticed you sooner…." commented Marik as he continued to lick his lips as he was now really getting a good look at the servant girl. He noted her toned ab muscles that were peeking out above the top of her skirt and the small indents in her arms creating toned biceps and forearms. He also noticed the way her blonde hair swept past her protruding collar bone; What Marik wouldn't do to be kissing up and down her neck right now…. _She is quite fit for a servant I must say…._ "What do you do exactly?"

Malik was taken by surprise by the man's question and lost her train of thought.

 _Shit! What did Joey say my job was again? SHIT!... Oh right!_

"For your information. I am her highness's personal dresser and dress maker, now if you don't mind I must be going…. I hope to NOT see you in the future."

Before Malik could get very far however, Marik grabbed onto her wrist and swung her back towards him so she twisted and was now facing him with his hands firmly placed around her waist.

"Just wait one minute missy. I believe I asked you for your name. You do realize that I am the captain of the guard and by law you do need to give me your name."

Try as hard as she may, Malik could not get free of the Egyptian's firm grasp. After a few seconds of struggle she decided to give up.

 _Come on Malik. Just give him your name and then get out of here._

"If you must know…. My name is Malik. Now let me go before I get my dagger out again."

"Mhmmm Malik… nice name… I will let you go, but not because you threatened me with your dagger. I mean, what could a servant really even do with a dagger?"

 _Ugh! If only I didn't have to stay under cover! I would show him a thing or two!_ Thought Malik as she let another growl go from her throat. This guy was really starting to get under her skin. Malik didn't think this guy could do anything worse to get under her skin…. And then he did.

Marik leaned in closer to Malik and whispered in her ear "I'm letting you go because I have what I want… for now. We will be seeing one another soon my kitten. Just you wait." Before Marik moved away from her he decided to nibble a tiny bit on her ear. "I will be seeing you…. Malik." Marik let go of Malik and walked confidently away from the shell shocked blonde.

When Ryou agreed to go with Mana to her magic lessons she did not realize that she would be in such danger. Ryou ducked behind the vase again just barely missing the fire ball that was sent her way by accident from Mana.

"Sorry Ryou! I'm still working on the aiming part!"

Ryou did not want to risk being almost hit again so all she did was put her hand up with a thumbs up sign. "No problem Mana! Keep working at it!"

 _Lord at this rate she's going take off her own head before she masters anything if she's not careful._

"That's enough for today Mana…. I need to return to the monster realm to heal for a bit. We will pick up where we left off tomorrow at the same time. Now if you will both excuse me.

"Okay Mahad… um… I mean Dark Magician…. I'm sorry about your arm…. I really am trying…" Mana could not bring herself to look her master in the eyes as she apologized for burning the hairs off both of his arms.

"It's alright Mana. I shall see you tomorrow. Goodbye miss Ryou."

"Good bye Dark Magician."

As soon as Mahad left the room to go tend to his wounds Mana burst into tears.

"AGH! I will never be a true magician! I let master Mahad down every time!"

Seeing the young apprentice in such a state made Ryou's heart ache. Ryou could remember back to her days of magic training. Ryou's training went quite a bit better than Mana's but it was definitely not smooth sailing. Approaching the young girl, Ryou placed her hand on her shuddering shoulders and started to rub her back in a soothing rotation. It took a while but her sobs started to die down and you could see her chest starting to slow down to a more continuous beat. Ryou knew that what she was about to do would be dangerous but she could not bring herself to just ignore the girl and not help her.

"Mana." Huge green orbs connected with doe-eyed brown ones. "What if I helped you a bit with your magic? I know the spells that you are working on and I would love to help you improve your skills. How does that sound to you?"

It was like the last 10 minutes of constant tears were completely erased from time as a smile continued to grow and grow and grow on the young magician's tear stained face.

"Are you serious!?... You… you would be willing to help me?"

"Of course. I feel it is my duty as a light magician to help those who are training. I would love to pass on my knowledge to you." Before Ryou even finished her sentence she could feel small arms wrapping themselves around her neck and she was squeezed into one of the tightest hugs she has probably ever experienced.

"Thank you so much Ryou! I can't thank you enough! I promise I will even harder to make you proud!"

Ryou could feel her shoulder becoming wet with new found tears except she knew that this time the tears came from happiness and joy instead of sadness so she was okay with being drenched in salt.

"Wait! Aren't you supposed to be under cover?"

"Yes I am. As far as everyone else knows I am but a simple healer. However, if we are careful and make sure that we are alone, I am sure that I can help you out a little bit."

"Oh thank you Ryou!"

"It is my pleasure Mana."

"Do you think we could start now?" asked Mana as she continued to scan the room. "It looks like we are alone. Plus, no one really comes this way when they know that I am training…."

"I think that would be just fine. I do not need to be back in my room until supper anyways so I see no harm in working on a couple things right now." Ryou smiled and removed herself from Mana, standing up, bringing her right hand up. Mana's eyes seemed to bulge out of her head as a pure white flame seemed to grow from the tips of Ryou's fingers. "Now, let's work on that fireball." Ryou's innocent brown eyes changed only slightly as she turned towards the target that Mana was working with and threw with all her might. The white fire ball hit dead centre and it seemed as through Ryou didn't even try. Mana's eyes were full of wonderment. Master Mahad was an amazing Magician but he did not even compare to Ryou's power, even in his monster form.

"Ready to do this Mana?"

Mana slowly got off the ground and conjured herself up her own fireball. "I've never been more ready."

"Good."

Fireballs of both pink and white continued to fly through the air and with time, both were hitting their targets true every time.

Ryou was so invested in her teaching that she failed to notice the pair of piercing eyes glued to her form the entire time they were working.

 _So. The healer is actually a magician. Interesting._


	12. Chapter 12

Hi everyone! Look at me go! Two chapters in 1 week! I hope you enjoyed the last installment and chapter 12! I realize that things seem to be moving pretty slowly but it is so important for me to cover all the details of the story plus I need to leave room for all the relationships in this story to bloom.

Again, I do not own anything.

Enjoy!

Chapter: 12

The trickling of water, the rustling of leaves from the slight wind, and the beating of a lonely and sad heart were the only things that could be heard on that particular afternoon in the garden.

Atem could not seem to focus on anything. His talk with Seto had not gone the way he thought it would. He never like arguing with his cousin but sometimes he felt like no one was ever listening to him. Since his meeting, all he had done was pace around sulk in the garden. It really was the one place where he could be alone with his thoughts.

However, for the first time in a long time, Atem's thoughts were not riddled with worry and sadness which is surprising giving how his last conversation had gone. However bad his entire week thus far had gone his mind kept wandering back to the young girl he met in the morning. Why he wanted to see this woman again so badly was beyond him but he just could not seem to get her out of his head. All of his worries and troubles seemed to go way when he thought of her melodious voice and rich emerald green eyes. Even though he had not seen her face, she had enraptured him somehow. She didn't know he was the prince which Atem enjoyed. She was the first person to actually treat him like a person and not a prince. She wasn't like any of the pompous royals that always stayed around the palace. Ash seemed to be fun to talk with and she interested him greatly. Atem decided that he would definitely have to see her again.

"Lost in thought again are we?"

Atem was indeed so lost in thought that he failed to see or hear his mother enter the room. His mother was an amazing person and an even more amazing Queen. She always stood by his father's side and was always there for him when he was in need. She was Egyptian but she definitely did not look Egyptian. She was as tan as Atem and just as tall as his father. She had the same crimson red eyes that Atem had although they were far less harsh and angular. The one thing that shocked most people when seeing the queen for the first time was her floor length blonde hair. Most people in Egypt had either dark brown or black hair but his mother was the exception which is probably why his father was so attracted by her. Atem and his mother had always been close but when he got to a certain age, more and more of his time was spent with this father to ready him to be pharaoh one day. The older he got, the less he saw of his mother and it saddened him deeply.

"Hello mother. I was just getting away from a couple things for a while."

"Ah yes, the pressures and obligations of being the crown prince. It is a large burden to carry…. Especially when people are telling you what to do and who to be with?"

Crimson met crimson as Atem looked up in shock at his mother.

"How did you know….?"

"I do speak to your father every once in a while you know." Answered the queen, letting out a small laugh at her own little joke. Before continuing with their conversation, Nefra entered the garden a bit more and sat herself down beside Atem on the fountain bench. "And I did give birth to you. I would like to think that I know my son well enough to be able to tell when something is bothering him."

Atem smiled at this. Mother always knew how to make him smile and calm him down right away.

"Yes mother, you do know me quite well. You actually probably know me better than I know myself sometimes."

"Well dear that is what happens when you care about someone deeply. Someday you will have someone special in your life who will be able to read you like a book, and you them."

"I find that hard to believe with how the almighty pharaoh has set up my life for me…. How am I ever supposed to love someone that I have never met before? And a princess to boot? All of the princess's I have ever met have been stuck up brats who are only interest in their own beauty and how wealthy they are. Why would this one be any different?"

"Oh my dear Atem…. You always were one to wear your heart on your sleeve. I know your father has tried to mold you into a man who hides his emotions from all so to not look weak but I always knew that you were never meant to hide. As far as your predicament with your arranged marriage to the princess, how do you know that this girl isn't one of the sweetest and kindest souls you will ever meet? I think you need to put yourself in her shoes. This arrangement was made between your father and her father. Did you ever stop to think that maybe she is just as upset about this situation as you are?"

Atem was about to dictate her mother's "words of wisdom" but before he let anything leave the confines of his mouth, he stopped. Maybe he was judging to quickly…. His mother was right. The princess could be wonderful. She did seem nice enough with every new detail he got about her.

 _Ugh but that's not the point! She could be nice and sweet and beautiful but that does not mean that I will ever love her! She may not ever love me! I should be able to choose my own bride… a person who is kind and caring, strong willed, a friend to all, but also someone who is not afraid to have a little fun every once in a while… someone like…_

"Atem?" Queen Nefra probed. "It's not just the arranged marriage that's bugging you… is it?

Atem was lost in thought again but the queen noticed that her son's expression had changed slightly. He was not as pensive as he was before. It was as though the thought of something…. Or someone…. Seemed to calm him slightly…..

"Atem….?"

"Mother…..did you know that you loved father right away?"

To say that Nefra was shocked by her son's question was a shock to her was an understatement. For as long as Atem had been in their lives he had never asked any questions about his parent's personal lives.

"Atem…. I knew that I loved your father from the first time our eyes met. Words were never needed but when they were spoken, nothing else mattered…." The Queen sighed as she slightly day dreamed about her and Aknamkanon's first meeting.

"It sounds nice…. I would give anything to have that…."

"Atem, if you don't mind me asking, where is this coming from?"

Atem was unsure of whether or not to tell his mother about the servant girl. He was not even sure of how he felt. All he did know was that she was nothing like anyone he has ever met. She was a servant though. Although that didn't matter to Atem, his best friends were servants and besides Seto and Serenity, none of them were noble….. Atem shifted his gaze towards his mother again. She was unwavering. She was not going anywhere without an answer.

Ashtianna made her way back towards the garden that she was in earlier. It seemed quite empty and she really wasn't in any mood to be conversing with anyone so she thought it would be the best place to go for a while, heck she might even run into Yami again. Ashtianna was beginning to feel homesick again and was not sure what to do in this new and unfamiliar world. She was still confused however on the reason why she was sent to Egypt. It made more sense to send her to where her future husband resides. She'll be going there eventually so why the reasoning behind the stop in Egypt? It really made no sense to the princess because apparently the prince of Egypt was also in the same predicament that she was and his future bride would be arriving in 2 months' time which is what Ash and the girls were supposedly preparing for. It just didn't make sense to her because then they would have to leave as soon as the princess arrived because she would have no clue on who they were.

 _Oh well…. I'm sure that between my parents and Joey they felt that this was the safest place for me… for some reason…. I'm just so sick of being treated like a china doll. Why can't people just treat me like a normal human being who is strong and independent?_

Ashtianna was reminded of a song that her mother used to sing to her when she was a little girl and couldn't help herself from humming along until the words began to flow out of her.

 _ **Don't let your life,**_

 _ **slip through the cracks in your hand  
If you hold on tight,**_

 _ **then you might stand a chance**_

 _ **Don't be yourself**_

 _ **if you're not someone you like  
There's hope for change **_

_**in anyone's life**_

She could see an image of her mother so clearly now, her floor length Chesnutt brown hair, her porcelain soft skin wiping away tears shed, her warm and welcoming smile, and her green eyes that compared only to her own. Her mother was always there for her…. And the last time they spoke….

 _I yelled at her…._

How could she be so cruel? Her mother was just looking out for her best interests.

 _I am so weak compared to her…_

 _ **The paper skin I'm living in it tells the truth,**_

 _ **it proves I'm broken  
This paper skin, **_

_**so frail so thin and every touch can tear me open**_

Just as Atem was about to confess to his mother about his true feelings he heard the faintest hum in the distance, of what he could only describe as an angel singing. Atem hardly noticed that his body had now taken over his actions and he was now slowly walking towards where the singing was coming from. They were definitely in the garden… but where?

"Atem? Where are you going?"

Atem did not have time to answer his mother's questions and he continued on through the garden to find the voice that had entranced him so. Turning the corner into the rose garden portion of the area, Atem finally had his chance to gaze upon the owner of the voice.

 _It's her…._

 _ **The paper skin I'm living in it tells the truth,**_

 _ **it proves I'm broken  
This paper skin, **_

_**so frail so thin and every touch can tear me open**_

 _Her voice is so amazing…. But it such a sad song…_

"What are you doing?" Atem grinned when Ash jumped and began to search for him. Her eyes widened when they met his.

 _Oh no! It's Yami! I really hope he didn't hear my singing…._

"Oh Yami! Um nothing really… just exploring and relaxing for a bit but I guess I really should be getting back to work." Ash answered, turning to walk away, but Atem ran and caught her arm.

"Wait! Wait! Please do not be embarrassed… I rather enjoyed your voice…I was on the other side of the garden when I heard it." Ash gave him an inscrutable stare for a couple of seconds, making Atem let go of her arm. He had never seen anyone give a look of that sort. The two stood in silence for what seemed like hours until another voice entered the garden.

"Atem? Where on earth did you run off to?"

Shit! Mother! I forgot she was following me. Think fast Atem!

Queen Nefra turned the corner but before she could utter one word, Atem cut her off.

"Your highness." Both Atem and Ashtianna bowed at the sight of the queen. "Are you looking for your son Atem?"

At first the queen was quite confused by her son's words but as an intelligent women she was able to catch on quite quickly.

He is hiding his identity from this poor servant girl… but why….? Hmmm maybe I can have a little fun with my son….

"Ah yes thank- you…?"

"Yami" Atem quickly answered realizing that his mother probably wouldn't know the name he had decided to use for his cover.

"Ah yes Yami. Do you know where my son Atem might be?"

"I am sorry your highness, I regret to say that I do not know where Atem might be."

"Alright well thank you for your honesty. And who might this be?" asked Queen Nefra of the girl in front of her who had yet to bring up her head to look at her.

Crimson met emerald green and almost instantly the queen's eyes were full of recognition and memory of a childhood friend, a comrade, a sister, her best friend.

 _Those Eyes!... I have only ever seen those eyes once in my entire life…. Layla…. Could it be? Ashtianna?_

"Your Majesty. It is an honour to be in your presence. My name is Ash. I am one of your son's brides hand maidens."

 _Hand maiden? How could this be? She is undoubtedly my dear friend Layla's daughter…. Why is she pretending to be a simple servant?_

The Queen's mind was going everywhere in a million different directions but finally they all came to a stop… at all the same conclusion.

 _Aknam….._

 _A_ lthough the Queen was fuming on the inside she continued to be calm and illustrious on the outside. To anyone looking at her they would think she was completely at ease.

"Well it is very nice to meet you Ash. I hope you enjoy your new home here at the palace."

Before Queen Nefra departed from the two she remembered the fact that she wanted to mess with her son a little bit because of choices he had made.

"Ah and before I go, Yami?"

"Yes my Queen?"

"Atem's chambers are an absolute disaster area. Do you think you could head over there as soon as possible and clean it up?"

"Does the prince not have regular servants to do that for him?"

"He does but I have decided to give them the day off. They are such hard working people that I thought they deserved a break. So if you would, go and clean his room. I will inform the head servant that you will be doing that today."

"Of… of course… my Queen. A—Anything for you."

"I will be on my way then. Good day. Yami. Ash."

 _I will have to have a conversation with my dear husband regarding what just played out in front of me. All I know is that my son is now lying to, what he assumes to be, a servant girl about his true identity because I assume he is harbouring some feelings for the girl, which is why he was being so odd in the garden earlier this afternoon when it was just the two of us. However Atem is unaware of the fact that "Ash" is actually princess Ashtianna…. Who is actually Atem's bri—._

The Queen's thoughts brought her to a complete stand still at the edge of the garden. She had to get to the bottom of this before someone got seriously hurt. There was nothing that made the angrier than someone playing with the hearts of others and lying while doing it.

 _Why on earth would my husband keep something like this from me!?_


	13. Chapter 13

**Hi Everybody! Sorry for not updating! If it at all helps, Chapter 14 and 15 are done as well! I will post those as well in the next couple days.**

 **This chapter has a lot of unfolding happening, some interaction between the Pharaoh and the Queen and we get to see some advancement in Ashtianna and Atem's relationship!**

 **I will warn you now that with the coming chapters, the rating of the story may go up for swearing and sexual content. – Just a fair warning.**

 **Again – I do not own anything**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Chapter 13**

Queen Nefra wasted no time in going to see her husband about her latest findings.

 _Why on earth is her son pretending to be a servant?! And why on earth is my god child dressed as a maid and even in Egypt in the first place!?_

Without bothering to knock or ask permission to enter, Nefra stormed into her husband's study.

The Pharaoh was in a meeting with his father, Shimon, discussing what they could do to help their friends in Greece ad what action they could take without alerting Dartz of anything suspicious going on. The last thing they would want to do is bring attention to their country because then they would be leading Dartz right to the princess.

"Excuse me father, I need to talk with my wife, apparently there is something dire that we must discuss."

Shimon was a quiet man so he took his leave, saying nothing. As soon as Shimon had exited the room, Aknamkanon spoke.

"Nefra, what seems to be the trouble my dear?"asked Aknamkanon in the most calm and soothing voice he could muster. In all reality, at that point, he was not really concerned as his wife tended to be a bit of a drama queen.

"The trouble dear husband, is that, as I speak, your son is traipsing around the palace grounds dressed as a common servant. I have no idea why he has decided to degrade his status but I have a pretty big hunch that is something to do with the young lady that I saw with him… a young lady that shares a striking resemblance with my best friend….. QUEEEN LAYLA!"

At that point, Aknamkanon had become as rigid as an iceberg.

 _Ra Dammit! How did she find out! I should have never kept this secret from her!_

"Ah yes. I was meaning to talk to you about that dear."

"Oh really?! You were meaning to talk to talk to me? I find that hard to believe seeing as how you did not attempt to tell me the truth every single time were together! Aknam! How could you keep this from me!? How could you not tell me that my god-daughter was staying in these very walls! Why is she here? What has happened?

The Queen was now fuming and The Pharaoh was beginning to become scared. He was not scared of many things in the world but if he was scared of one thing, it was his wife when she was angry. The pharaoh stared at his wife for a long time, not knowing really what to say. She was so beautiful, even when she was mad like this. If it hadn't been for the worry/stress lines now creased across her forehead, he would be hard pressed to see any difference in her looks from the day he married her. She was his comrade, his confidant. Normally, Aknam told his wife everything and he did so to avoid exactly what was happening right now. Heaving one large sigh, Aknam asked his wife to take a seat and he started from the very beginning. He was surprised that she sat there for so long and just listened. Once Aknamkanon was finished it took the Queen a good minute to let everything sink in.

The Queen slowly brought herself up and out of her seat and began to pace again. It wasn't a rapid pace like before but more of a pensive, concentrated pace. She had begun to mutter to herself and make weird motion with her arms. She did this for another good minute until she stopped dead in her tracks and finally spoke.

"Alright…okay…One. Are Layla and Alexander alright?"

"As of right now it is unknown to us the status of the King and Queen. The last word that I got from Alexander before the attack was about keeping Ashtianna safe."

"Okay… but we can probably assume that Dartz has not killed them as he will probably keep them alive to use them as some sort of leverage … right?"

"I would have to agree with you Nefra."

"But why does he want Ashtianna so badly then? I don't understand. She has nothing to do with throne as of yet."

"I think 'yet' is the operative word there darling. It is come to my understanding that before I made the arrangement for Atem and Ashtianna to marry that King Alexander and Queen Layla had brought in Dartz as a possible suitor. I can only assume that Dartz planned on marrying the princess and becoming King through marriage. He has been eyeing their kingdom for ages now. Once he found out that he had no chance with the princess he most likely lost it, hence the invasion. I can only assume he needs the princess so that the kingdom's subject will actually see him as a true ruler. The subjects in that kingdom are quite loyal to the royal family. So without the princess –"

"He can never truly be king….Why are we keeping this from our children? Do you not think that they deserve to know? Who else knows about this?" By this time Queen Nefra had begun pacing again and it was making Aknamkanon more stressed than he already was.

"Nefra Please…. Calm down! Please come sit down!" The Queen, not being one to listen to people telling her what to do, surprisingly went to sit down by her husband so that he could continue. "Dartz is a dangerous man. I had warned Alexander of this before he let the man step into his Kingdom. However, the man is good at charming his way into people's hearts. I know what this man is capable of and I only wanted to try and keep everyone as safe as possible. The safest place for the princess was undercover in our palace. I have no doubt in my mind that Dartz has spies all over this kingdom and if anything got out that the princess of Greece was staying within these walls, we would be under attack within mere days. The only people who are aware of the entire story are myself, Priest Seto, Miss Josephine Wheeler and now yourself. My father knows some parts but not all and I would like to keep it that way. The less people that know the better. Atem has been told that he is to be wed to a princess and Ashtianna has been told that she is to be wed to a prince. Neither are aware of the names of their betrothed or where they are from. Ashtianna knows that the prince of Egypt is betrothed to be married to a princess which allows us to give her an undercover position as her personal hand maiden, as well as the other 3 girls from Greece. As long as the two of them don't find out who they are supposed to marry and that Ashtianna is undercover, everything should work out fine."

"Fine? FINE!?" Our closest friends are in danger, we are lying to our son, and our future daughter in-law is in grave danger! How is everything going to be fine! Akman I don't possibly see how this is going to work. Plus, the two of them have already met and have been talking."

"It will be fine Nefra. Ashtianna knows not to tell anyone of her true identity and even if she does find out that Atem is the crown prince, she will think that he is engaged and will continue to be his friend and stay at a distance."

The Queen was still not completely on board with everything that her husband had put together but what else could they do? He was right in certain aspects though. Ashtianna was safest when under their roof.

"Alright… I will go along with this plan and I will do my best to act normal. One thing has still not been explained however. Why is our son gallivanting through the palace pretending to be a servant?"

All the Pharaoh could do was smile at this point.

 _So my son is falling for the girl…._

It wasn't long before the Pharaoh started to chuckle to himself. The Queen was a very smart woman and had a lot of say when it came to diplomacy in the kingdom so Aknamkanon was quite surprised when she wasn't getting it right away.

"Nefra dear, our son is falling in love…. He has always told us that he cannot stand the women that we have been showing him because, although they are beautiful, they are spoiled and are only interested in his title and fortune. Maybe our son is finally taking the time to get to know what is on the inside of this girl. I am surprised though… our son is quite known for keeping beautiful women around as company. Wouldn't he be surprised to find out that the women underneath those servant rags is more beautiful than any of the women that we have shown him combined."

While Aknamkanon was talking, the Queen started to see the light. Her baby boy was growing up.

"Yes… the princess is one of radiance and beauty like I have never seen before. I am looking forward to seeing how this all turns out."

"As am I my dear, as am I."

Atem was at a loss for words. For one, he had just narrowly avoided Ash finding out his true identity but his mother had also made him pay for the situation that he was now in by making him clean his own room…

 _Damn her… Father always did say I got my intelligence from my mother…_ Atem let out a low chuckle as he thought this. However, his thoughts were broken when Ash spoke up.

"You're not here as a messenger for Pharaoh, are you? Or Josephine? Am I supposed to be somewhere right now? I apologize if I am in the way. I just really enjoyed the garden this morning and thought I might come back to take another look." She asked finally, and Atem blinked, and suddenly realized why she had stared at him the way she had.

 _Get it together Ash. You are engaged to be married…. The least you can do for all the suffering and trouble your parents are going through is be loyal to the agreement and respect their wishes…. Although he is super cute…. I'll have to push him away somehow…._

"No, of course not. I don't see the pharaoh very often and I have not formally met any of the others that you came here with." Atem laughed, and Ash's tension dissipated.

"Then, what do you want? I'm sure that you have far more important things to do than talk to insignificant me. I realize that you are not of the royal family but I am also beginning to realize that you must be a quite important servant to have conversations with the Queen.… I do not wish to use up your time…."

Atem's thoughts went every which way.

 _Okay well crap… that whole scene didn't convince her completely…. At least she still thinks I'm some sort of servant… but she still doesn't know I'm a prince so I'm still in the clear._

"Weeeeeeell…" He drew out, looking at Ash from the corners of his eyes.

"You are right. I am not a regular servant but I am not much higher in rank. Please do not think of me any differently. I _was_ going to ask you what you were doing today and possibly show you around the palace, and show you all of the good spots to hide away from anything stressing."Atem was definitely a trickster and he wanted to see if Ash could play along with him "But I mean if you're too busy then I can just continue on my way. After all, knowing your own way around isn't _that_ important…." Atem elaborated, sounding nonchalant and uncaring as he waved and started to leave. Ash stared after him in surprise.

 _Ugh I really hope this works…. I would love to continue to get to know her…._ 3... 2... 1... Atem counted in his head as he walked.

 _Ugh I am going to regret this I just know it…I guess if no one finds out there should be no harm.._ "Wait!" Ash called, and Atem let out a huge sigh of relief and turned with a grin as his countdown proved correct.

"Right, let's get going! First of all, you know your way around the courtyard and you have already seen the garden. That's good if you want to get away from everything but you're missing all of the best parts of the palace if you stay here." Atem began explaining, grabbing Ash's wrist and pulling her along.

"Can't we go at a more reasonable speed? I'm not sure if I can keep up to your pace." Ash cried as she let a couple giggles slip out but Atem slowed down anyway.

"There's too much to be seen for going slow! And who knows when you'll be free at the same time as me. You might get too busy for me once the princess arrives and I would really like to continue getting to know you." He answered, not speeding up at all, even though it seemed like he wanted to. Ash looked at him with confusion.

 _He is so different from anyone I have ever met, so full of energy and fun. He seems so genuine and doesn't seem to care that he does not know what I look like… He is right…. But not for the reasons he thinks… I will be too busy once the princess arrives because that will probably mean I have to leave…. I might as well have some fun while I can… What Joey doesn't know won't hurt her…._

Ash stopped for a second, prompting Atem to stop as well.

"Well, if there is so much we need to cover then I guess we should get going!" At this, Ash took off in front of Atem. She stopped again when she was about 20 feet ahead of him, seeing now that he hadn't followed her. "Well? Are you coming or not!?" yelled Ash.

The only thing that came to Atem's mind was ….. _Wow_

Atem could not believe what he had just witnessed…. All he could do was smile at the small, young girl ahead of him…

 _This should be an interesting day…_

Atem then took off towards Ash which prompted her to keep going but it did not take Atem that long to catch up to her and the duo were off on their own little adventure for the day.

Ashtianna was walking back to her room after having one of the best days she had ever had. Yami had shown her every nook and cranny of the palace and he made everything sound so interesting. He had told her that he was born in the palace as a servant and had worked there ever since he was old enough to walk. The two talked about their interests and their distaste. However, the best part of the day was when Yami took her to the stables.

 **Flashback**

"… _And here we have the stables…" Atem looked down at the girl beside him and thought he saw a small glimmer in her eye appear that wasn't there before. "Do you like horses Ash?"_

" _Like!? I love them! Where do they keep the horses?" Ashtianna could not hold back her excitement at the idea of possibly seeing Star._

" _They are right this way –"_

 _But before Atem could get out the rest of his sentence, Ash was pulling him towards the open barn doors. Once the two were in there, Atem noticed that there were a couple extra horses in the barn than there normally were. He noticed that Ash had gone straight for a brown and white paint that was on the far end of the stables. She was stroking the horses head gently and making small cooing noises while doing so._

" _Do you know this horse?"_

 _Ash was brought out of her own thoughts when she felt Yami behind her._

" _Ah yes… This is Star. Yami, meet Star. Star, this is my new friend Yami."_

 _The young girl smiled up at the horse named Star and started to brush her mane with a spare brish that had been left behind._

' _Friend'. Atem couldn't help thinking that that particular word had never sounded better. He unconsciously smiled as well before the young Ash started to talk again._

" _I have had Star ever since I was a little girl… She was a gift from – um she was a gift from the princess. Yes the princess! As her personal hand maiden she wanted me to be able to go with her when she would go riding. She asked the King and Queen and I was gifted Star the next day."_

 _Atem had to admit, the horse was beautiful and definitely pure bread. At first he was surprised that the young maiden had such a horse but once she told him that it was a gift from royalty it made sense. Ash noticed that Yami had wandered off to the other side of the stable, opposite from Star and was now brushing a beautiful white stallion. Ashtianna left Star for a little bit and wandered over to where Yami was. Ash stood nearby for quite some time, watching Yami stroke the horse's neck. She watched as every time he brought up his arm to start another stroke, the muscles in his arms moved in the most tantalizing way. Ash kept thinking to herself about how gorgeous he was but then quickly reminded herself to keep her mind out of the gutter._

" _Who is this?" asked Ash. Yami didn't even turn around to respond to the question he had been asked as he was too busy brushing the horses mane._

" _This is Lark. I was also gifted Lark as a young boy."_

" _He is quite beautiful Yami…. Wait who gave you him?"_

 _Atem was caught off guard… Shit… he thought to himself. I was totally caught up in everything that I forgot that I am undercover._

" _Um the prince actually. It seems we were both gifted by royalty." Atem gave a nervous laugh after he was done giving his excuse… I hope she bought that… thought Atem._

" _Well… we are quite lucky then aren't we? To have such amazing people looking out for us." The young girl smiled up at him, even though he could not tell through the veil that she was wearing._

 _Atem was continually surprised by the woman in front of him._

" _We will have to go for a ride sometime then. Lark hasn't been out for a good long ride in quite some time."_

" _I would like that."_

 **End Flashback**

She was still smiling as she entered her bedroom later that evening. She had noticed that all three of her friends were sound sleeping. Ryou looked absolutely exhausted and Malik was snoring like a bear. Joey was rolled over on her side so Ash could not get a good look at her but assumed that she was sleeping as well. As soon as the princess jumped into bed and her head hit the pillow, she was asleep almost instantaneously. A smile slowly crept onto her features as she had wonderful dreams about a certain handsome servant.

Elsewhere in the palace, the young prince was also dreaming about the young servant girl that had wandered into his life so unexpectedly.


	14. Chapter 14

_Hi guys! Wow its been awhile! I'm sorry for not updating. I started a new job plus I got married this summer. It's been pretty hectic to say the least._

 _I am continuing this story and believe it or not, I have quite a bit written but it's still in pieces. I am also continuing my frozen/guardian's crossover fan fiction as well._

 _I am hoping to start updating on a regular basis but please don't hold your breath._

 _Ps, This is the chapter that I believe the rating for this fic goes up so if your under the age of 16 please don't read and if you don't like sexual tension and innuendos then please don't read._

 **Chapter: 14**

For the life of her, Joey just could not seem to fall asleep. She had no idea what time it was now but knew that most of the palace would be sleeping because the sun was completely down so it had to be quite late in the evening. Joey quickly decided that a walk around the palace would be just what she needed before heading back to bed to try to sleep. She put her new white dress back on and put her hair up into a messy bun. As she tip-toed out of the room she noticed all three girls were sleeping soundly in their beds. This made Joey's nerves go down immensely. Now she didn't have to worry about anyone but herself. Everything was going so smoothly since their arrival in Egypt. Ash was staying hidden, Malik hasn't killed anyone yet and no one had found out about Ryou's powers.

 _So why am I so worried?_ Thought a restless Joey.

Even though Joey knew that the four of them would be safe in Egypt and that as long as their identities remained a secret there was no way that Dartz would be able to find them, she could not help herself from worrying about her friend.

Joey made her way down the winding halls of the palace until she was brought to a small balcony that overlooked the kingdom.

 _There is too much going on right now… The last thing I want is for Ash to get hurt but I know for a fact that we are hurting her as well. We may not be hurting her physically like Dartz would be, but we are still hurting her._

Joey was so wrapped up in her thoughts that her guard was so down that she failed to realize that someone had come up behind her.

"Bit late for you to be out on your own, Mutt, don't you think? Seto asked, his voice expressionless.

 _UGH! Not now!_ thought Joey to herself

"Oh piss off Seto. I am not in the mood." Joey was just beginning to relax.

 _So much for that._

"You know I could ask you the same question." Huffed Joey as she turned to look at the priest.

"I just finished my work for the day. Some of us have to work for a living." He replied stiffly. "As for you, I know that the princess is not here to boss you around as she is probably sleeping, and your room is way on the other side of the palace."

"Well it's really none of your business now is it?" answered Joey. All Seto did was raise one eyebrow at her. "Ugh Fine! I couldn't sleep so I thought a walk would be good before I went back to try and sleep. Happy now?" Joey started walking off in another direction, hoping that the young priest would leave her be. But no. Of course, he continued to follow her. Joey continued on her way until they came to an open hallway where the moon was shining down into, creating a luminescent glow to everything in the hallway. Joey found herself leaning over the railing, staring at the moon.

"Still stalking me High Priest?" asked Joey without even having to turn around.

"Hardly. This is the way to my room after all." Huffed Seto. This really was the way to his room but it just so happened that it was also the way that the young beautiful blonde guard had decided to go as well.

She gave him a grin surprisingly. "Right… Sorry."

It was eerie how different and, at the same time, similar, Joey's looks were from when he saw her on that first day. Her thick messy blonde hair was pulled up and out of her face. Seto could see all the physical training she had gone through as it was now a lot easier to see her toned muscles, only it was still subtle and very feminine in a way. Obviously she was far more equipped to be the Royal Princess's personal body guard than Seto had originally thought. The way the moon was hitting her curves and face was doing other things to her outer appearance that Seto had overlooked the first time he saw her as well. She looked like a freaking Angel. Seto mentally groaned.

 _She's beautiful, stubborn, and daring, considering it looked like she was about to hit him earlier today. She's the first woman who has ever dared to stand against me. Why, of all people, in all of Egypt, did he have to be attracted to Joey Fucking Wheeler?_

"Seto, you're staring again." Joey informed him, her honey brown eyes narrowed. Seto blinked a couple times before responding.

"Don't flatter yourself Pup"

Joey rose a brow. "Pup?"

Seto made a growling noise. "You look like a girl now," was his excuse. As if it explained everything.

Joey just stared at him. "So?" She knew that being amused by the priest's frustration would probably get her killed, but it was just too good to pass up.

"Look, I can't seem to bring myself to call you mutt now…. Because you look more feminine now," he revealed, his hands balling up into fists. "Happy?"

All Joey could do was smirk to herself at Seto's loss for words. She turned around to look back out at the moon and the never ending desert landscape.

All Seto could do was growl and swiftly turn away from the smug woman in front of him that was surprisingly beginning to arouse him with the way she was standing in the moonlight. Seto hurried away from that spot in the hall, trying desperately not to look at her anymore as he knew it would just make it worse. He walked with a quick pace to his own room which was actually very close to where they were standing, slamming the door behind him as he entered the room.

 _Damn you Joey! Why must you be so charming?!_ Seto cursed to himself as he went into the bathing room that was connected to his bed chambers. He began to rid himself of his priest robes. There were quite a few layers to his robes so they took quite a while to get off but as soon as Seto was completely rid of it all he embraced the cool Egyptian night breeze on his tanned skin. However, now that Seto was rid of his robes he was far more aware of the evidence left from his momentary thoughts of lust towards Joey. The feeling had gone down but the images were still left in the forefront of his mind. Seto grabbed a piece of linen that had been draped near the bath and he grabbed it to wrap around his waist. The water was quite cold that was left in his tub because the servants had probably filled it much earlier on in the day. Just as Seto was about to get into the tub to wash away the days grime and dirt he heard a certain blonde's voice, which he was desperately trying to get out of his head, calling out his name.

"Seto! Are you in there?"

As he turned around in the direction of the door to the bathing room, Joey happened to turn the corner at the exact same time. Seto's eyes widened in shock along with hers. All he could do was grab the edge of the linen that was currently wrapped around his waist to make sure it didn't go anywhere. However, he could do nothing about his bare chest.

Joey gasped and started chanting sorry over and over again like it was the only word in her entire vocabulary.

"What do you think you are doing in here!" yelled Seto, failing to stay calm.

"sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry…" muttered Joey continuously as she tried to divert her eyes away from the half-naked man in front of her. She avoided the question which made Seto even madder than he already was.

"Answer the question!"

Seto's yelling and anger seemed to bring Joey out of her trance, finally answering him.

"Er….I….erm… I was wanting to head back to my room… and I haven't been here that long…and…. Well I seem to have gotten lost and could not remember which direction I came from…. I saw you go in here so I was hoping…. Hoping you could point me in the right direction…. I wasn't expecting you to be… um well… not like this!... It's your fault! You should have answered me when I called and stopped me from coming in or put up a curtain or something!

This shocked Seto to say the least. She started out her answer stammering and quiet but by the end of it she was still wanting to pick a fight with him.

"What do you mean it's MY fault!? No one gave you permission to enter my quarters! You can't just explore rooms like this at your own free will!"

 _Who does this woman think she is! She has been here for less than 24 hours and I have had more trouble with her than I have had with all the women I have ever met combined!_

"Whatever…" Joey muttered under her breath. Seto looked back at the woman seeing that she had turned away from him now. Images of his lust towards her were starting to come back as he, unconsciously, started to take a couple steps towards her. "Look I'm sorry… I didn't mean to barge in like that… I'll just leave th…. Eep!".

 _What in the world!? What is he doing!?_

Joey wasn't able to get out the rest of her sentence out as she felt Seto wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her closer in towards him. Joey could feel the blush growing on her cheeks as she began to remember that Seto was basically naked behind her.

"Oh no you're not going anywhere just yet." Answered Seto, while he began to look up and down the blonde's neck as he breathed in and out.

Joey shivered as she felt his hot breath just beside her neck before feeling him push his face into the crook of her neck. He continued to inhale her scent there for a couple seconds making the hair on the back of Joey's neck stand up on edge.

"Wh… what are you doing?" squeaked Joey in complete surprise at what the high priest was currently doing to her. The tension in her body was physically visible to the human eye if anyone were to walk in on them right then.

"I like your scent…. You know Josephine… Joey… You have been a pain in the ass ever since you first arrived here in Egypt… You're snarky, stubborn and rude but at the same time you follow the rules and are loyal to your friends and those who rule… I can't quite seem to figure you out…."

All of this was too much for Joey… She was scared at how her predicament was making her feel. On one hand, she never let any man bring down her guard and would never let feelings of lust and need over take her… but he just felt so dam good with his arms around her. She was surprised at how toned he was at first, thinking that as a priest he shouldn't have time to keep up with his physique.

 _How had he gone from yelling at her one minute to groping her the next!_

Joey's mind was beginning to shut down as his hands rubbed up and down her arms and waist. She was slowly letting go until his hand began to snake around to her hips and thighs. Without haste, Joey quickly jumped out of the priests arms, not giving him any time to stop her.

"Nothing to figure out here… I'll just find my room on my own… thanks anyways though!"

Joey hardly had the entire sentence out before she was running out of the room, leaving a very aroused priest.

"Hmph"

 _Well that sure was interesting… I may have to have Wheeler 'accidentally' walk in on one of baths again sometime soon… I wouldn't mind seeing what would have happened if she hadn't left._

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Getting to sleep was no easy task for Joey, especially after what had happened between her and high priest Seto the night before. Needless to say, getting out of bed in the morning was an even harder task for Joey.

"JOEY!"

Joey was startled awake by a screeching violation to her ear drums. She landed with a thump on the cold stone beside her bead, hitting her head along the way.

"Ra Dammit!" yelled a very confused and angry Joey while attempting to bring her hand up to rub her throbbing forehead only to find that she could not move her arms.

All Malik, Ryou and Ash could see were limbs intertwined with sheets, like a pretzel, sprawled across the floor.

"Look who woke up on the wrong side of the bed… literally" snickered Malik. Her friend's predicament was quite hilarious and she couldn't seem to hold it in.

"Oh Hardy Har Har! Very funny Malik! Now would someone please help me untangle these sheets so I can get off the freaking floor!?" Ryou and Ash rushed over to help their friend while Malik seemed to be in less of a hurry.

"Joey I can't believe that you are still sleeping! We were all supposed to go out and meet the people who we would be working with while at the castle. That was about an hour ago….." There was slight hesitation in Ashtianna's voice as she revealed to Joey how late it actually was. Sadly, everything the girls had done to try and get Joey untangled, was wasteful as soon as Joey started freaking out.

"ARE YOU KIIDDING ME! UGH! THAT FREAKIN PRIEST WILL HOLD THIS AGAISNT ME FOREVER!" The girls were desperately trying to grab the sheets and pull them away from Joey but her flailing was too much for them to handle. Without even realizing what was happening, Joey felt a large tug from underneath her and then felt her entire body flip up and over until she landed back on the cold stone ground with a large thump.

"Owww! What the hell was that!?" Joey asked, finally being able to reach her head to try and rub her throbbing headache away. Both Ryou and Ash looked at each other with equally stunned faces until they both turned their heads to look up at the grinning blonde standing in front of them, holding the sheets in the air.

"What? You two were working way to slow for my liking and I had to get Joey to stop freaking out somehow." Answered Malik as she crumpled the sheets into a ball and threw them back onto Joey's bed. "Plus, it was a little bit of revenge for putting me in this stupid dress." It had appeared that while Ryou and Ash were down on the floor failing to unravel Joey from her sheets, Malik decided to take the small end of fabric that was sticking out from under Joey's rear, grabbed it, and yanked it from right under her.

"ooooh Why I oughta!" It took all of Ryou's and Ashtianna's combined strength to keep Joey from Knocking Malik's teeth out at that point. Joey was practically foaming at the mouth she was so angry. "Let me at her!"

"Oh please. Joey, you wouldn't last 2 seconds in a fight with me, besides, you're up now aren't you? How late did you say everyone was Ash?"

A look of terror crossed Joey's face. She quickly gave up on her mission to scramble Malik's face and focused on putting on some sort of decent clothing. She didn't bother to brush her hair or do anything else. Before the girls could blink their eyes, Joey was gone.

"I don't think I have ever seen Joey move so quickly" said Ashtianna to the two other girls and not actually revealing what she was truly thinking. _What on earth has Joey so spooked? For all my life she has been the bravest person I know. Now suddenly she is scared of a simple meeting?_

The three girls went their separate ways for the morning, promising to meet up around noon so that they could check in with one another. Ryou would head off to work with Mana again and the Palace's healer, Malik was going to spend the day with Mai and Serenity, to her utter dismay, and Ash was headed off to the royal garden again. The Pharaoh had decided that it would be the safest place for her during the day while also giving her something to do and keep her identity in check.


	15. Chapter 15

Hi Everyone!

I told you I had chapters ready to go!

This chapter is where we begin to see relationships take form and we get to know a little bit more about all the pairings in the story.

Enjoy!

 **Chapter 15**

Malik was unbelievably unimpressed by her placement in the palace. At least Joey and Ryou were being somewhat helpful. Malik could do nothing but put together stupid dresses for the Queen and nobles. Mai and Serenity figured out quite quickly that Malik was going to be of little help to them in creating the garments so they decided to have her be a mannequin of sorts. She was similar in size to the queen, besides her muscles, so she was the perfect model for Mai to use when trying on the new outfits. Malik was fine with the entire arrangement until Mai decided to put her in one of the Queens more revealing Night Gowns.

"What the Fuck is this Mai!?"

Malik had walked out into the room wearing a one piece, purple, silk night gown that only came half way up Malik's thigh, with black lace trim around all the edges.

"Oh Malik you look simply scrumptious in that!" Mai let out a short giggle at how uncomfortable the so called captain of the guard seemed to be. "The Queen is still young and she requires some, how shall I put it, sexier items to wear in the bedroom."

"This is ridiculous! I am a freaking Army Captain and now I am reduced to a simple sex mannequin! Can I please take this off now!? You've seen it and it fits so I am done?"

"Yes Hun, go take it off." Both Mai and Serenity joined together in giggles as the platinum blonde huffed and stormed back into her changing area.

Malik had barely closed the curtains to the rooms she was changing in before a large hand wrapped itself around her upper arm and twisted her in. The person who had grabbed her closed his fingers around her arm, preventing her from pulling away from him, and leaned in as close as he could so that what he was about to say would only be heard by her ears.

"It's alright, little kitten," he murmured, his voice deliberately pitched low so that no one else would be able to hear. And when he spoke like that, soft, warm, scary and intimate, she immediately recognized him.

"It's you!" she gasped, her eyes growing wide. "I thought I told you to stay the fuck away from me!"

His smile this time was more genuine. "It's me." He agreed. Apparently he felt confident enough that he wasn't going to try to yank away, because his grip shifted, becoming less of a restraint and more of a caress, finger tips sliding up the inside of her waist. Every place he touched tingled.

"What are you doing in here?"

"I wanted to see my pretty little kitten again," some very inappropriate groans and pleasure noises escaped from Marik's throat as he began to stroke Malik's arms ad waist, "And I am so happy that I did. This color and fabric really does suit you."

Try as hard she might, Malik was really struggling to hate what he was doing to her. It was no secret that Malik was a strong independent woman who did not need a man to take care of her. However, that did not mean that she didn't still have urges; urges that had not been fulfilled in quite some time with most of her attention being on protecting the princess. So even though her mind was screaming to get the hell away, her body was screaming for him to touch her more. His voice quickly brought her mind back to the present to be able to over power her body.

"mmmmh I knew you couldn't resist me kitten."

That did it.

Quickly, Malik was out of Marik's grasp with no problem at all. Without hesitating another second, Malik reached out to her left and swiftly grabbed a sewing needle that had been left on the side table in the change room and brought it up towards Marik's neck.

"I thought I told you not to touch me like that." Growled out a very flustered and irritated Malik.

"I thought we were just playing a game my dear. We both know you enjoyed every minute of my touch."

Malik was frozen again. No one on the face of the earth had ever been able to get under her skin this much. She did not know what to do with herself.

"Now, let's start over alright? My name is Marik. I am the captain of the guard here for the Pharaoh's army. Now, what was your name again?" Marik had skillfully removed Malik's hand, which was holding a needle to his throat, down to her side while talking to her being that she was too stunned to do anything about it.

"Malik…."

"What a beautiful name… Look Malik… Obviously I find you fascinating. I would like to get to know you better but I cannot do that if you continue to push sharp objects in my face every time we are together."

All Malik could do was nod.

 _What the hell is wrong with me! If this was any other person, they would have been dead a long time ago!_

"Now I have to go, and I am sure that the girls are waiting patiently for you to put on another dress for them to sew. Now, be a good girl and go back to work. Till next time kitten…"

Malik was still too stunned to say anything or do anything. Marik vanished into the shadows and Malik had no idea where he disappeared to.

 _What the hell! How does he just poof into here and then poof out with no freaking exits anywhere! I swear I will figure out this guy if it is the last thing I do!_

"Malik are you almost changed! We want to get going on that next gown!" shouted Mai from the other side of the curtain.

 _Dammit_

"Coming! Just give me a second!"

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Ryou was absolutely exhausted. She had worked with the healer all morning, aiding to the sick and injured. That was enough to make her morning busy but in between patients, Ryou was working with Mana again on some spells. Mana was doing a lot better than she had been on the first day but it was still exhausting. It was hard for Ryou to imagine so many things going wrong with a spell when her magic came to her so naturally. But she saw the determination shining in the young magician's eyes and Ryou knew that she could never give up on her because she knew that if Mana kept going, she could one day become a great magician.

Although Ryou kept busy all morning, her senses and instincts stayed on high alert. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her all morning. Even now, as she was walking back towards her quarters, she couldn't get rid of this feeling of not being alone. That was the thought going through Ryou's head right before a hand slid across her mouth and an arm wrapped around her waist, hoisting her off of her feet and carrying her easily away from the main part of the corridor.

Ryou fought, squirming and jabbing with elbows and trying to kick, but it was of no use. Her kidnapper seemed to be expecting that she would put up a fight. He even seemed to know how to hold her wrist so that she was unable to use her powers in any way. Throughout the struggle Ryou heard a couple of pained, male grunts, but he didn't let go. At least, not until they were out of sight of anyone who might have been walking by. She was set down roughly and spun around, back pushed up against the wall of the palace before she had the chance to catch her breath. She kept her eyes closed for a minute, half-expecting a punch to the face or worse, but when nothing happened she opened them slowly. Her jaw dropped.

 _B-Bakura! What the hell! What does he want with me…._

"B-Bakura?" she stammered, stunned at the fact that one of the Pharaoh's trusted soldiers and magician, was currently pushed up against her.

Bakura crossed his arms and glared at her. "I know who and what you are," he said.

Oh Shit! Ryou thought, making a conscious decision to keep her arms at her waist

"Look, I know that you're not some simple maid, I know you're a magician, and a good one at that. Who are you?" Bakura asked, and there was no mistaking the steely tone in his voice. He wanted answers and he was prepared to get them. "Why are you here?"

"Can we go somewhere else to talk?" Ryou asked. "I'd really rather that no one else heard this."

"No." His voice was flat, and he didn't look like he was going to be easily swayed. Ryou blew out a breath in frustration, frowning. She recognized that he probably thought she was trying to get out of not telling him anything, but honestly she wasn't.

"Fine," she said. "But if anyone else overhears, it's on you….And how do I know that you can be trusted?"

"You can't. But your real concern should be what I'll do if you **don't** tell me. For example, I'm sure the prince would be very interested to know that all of his intended's personal maids include two trained soldiers and white magician." Bakura raised an eyebrow.

Ryou paled so fast she got dizzy. "Oh my god, please do not tell Atem, or anyone else for that matter! Bakura you'll ruin everything! If anyone finds about the princess she will be in grave danger! She reached out and clutched at his arms before she could stop herself. She started to speak in a low, furious whisper, a type of voice that rarely came out of the quiet tempered magician. "I'll tell you, okay? My name is Ryou Bakura. I am a very powerful light Magician. I work for King Alexander and Queen Layla of Greece. I am very close friends with the princess of Greece, Ashtianna. I am here with two other women, Malik Isis and Josephine Wheeler. We are also here with the princess herself because our kingdom was ambushed by Dartz and the King and Queen were taken hostage. Dartz is looking for Ashtianna as she is his key to the throne. We made the princess dress up as a servant because just before our kingdom was ambushed, it was made known that the princess was to be married to a foreign prince. What the princess doesn't know is that the prince she is to marry is Prince Atem. Prince Atem is also unaware of who he is to marry. I do not know why we aren't telling either of them what is going on but Joey and the pharaoh seem to think it is in the princess's best interest." Ryou seemed to get all of what she had to say out in one breath and now was completely out of air. As she stood there trying to catch her breath she continued to try to read the man in front of her. However, it was impossible to know what Bakura was thinking. His face was completely blank, his eyes dark as he stared at her.

Bakura stared at her for a couple of minutes.

"Do you realize how crazy all of that sounds?"

"Believe me, I know. My friends and I are figuring things out as we go." Telling Bakura what was going on seemed to be the only logical option at the time. She knew that he was also a powerful magician and it had been said that he had a very powerful Ka that he could summon to ward off enemies. Ryou knew that she could probably take him but she never wanted to succumb to violence if she didn't have to. "I swear I am telling the truth…"

"I know."

Ryou was sure that what she had just heard was completely wrong. _HE KNOWS!?_ "You know? How on earth do you know? The only people who were supposed to know were the four of us, the pharaoh and High Priest Seto."

"Humph. Yes, remind me again why people seem to go to that high strung idiot for everything important. Well, if you must know, I happen to be quite good at sneaking around without being noticed. I guess that is part of the reason that the pharaoh put me in charge of his stealth group. What the pharaoh seems to forget is that, although I am tremendous at infiltrating other kingdoms palaces, I am even better when it comes to territory that I am more familiar with. It was quite easy to eavesdrop on all of the pharaohs recent conversations."

"So why on earth did you kidnap me, corner me, and interrogate me if you already knew the answers?"

"I simply wanted to see if you would comply with my wishes…. You passed."

All Ryou could do was let out a huge sigh. The girls had been warned about Bakura but were all told that he tended to keep to himself so it would be very unlikely that they would see him while they were staying at the palace. _Yeah so much for that notion,_ thought Ryou. However, besides the entire kidnapping thing, the whole conversation she had with Bakura was not that bad. _He's not that scary I guess._ "Look, please don't tell Atem, or anyone else for that matter."

"I wouldn't tell his mighty highness anything, wouldn't want to put a dent in his rather shitty day." Bakura said, and she thought that he meant it. "However, I may have some fun with the entire situation. Wanna play?"

"You…" As soon as she opened her mouth, Ryou knew that there was no point in arguing. Bakura looked like he had his mind made up, and she didn't think she would have much luck in changing it. All she would be able to do is warn her friends ahead of time. "Alright. Fine. Just don't say anything to anyone, okay?"

Bakura simply dipped one shoulder in a shrug, neither affirming nor denying what she'd asked as he walked away.

() () () () () () () () () () ()

Joey had been desperately trying to keep her distance from Seto. Being in the same room with him had bothered her a lot in spite of the fact that there were 4 other people from pharaoh's council in the room between them. Just the thought that some part of their bare flesh might brush together was enough to make her skin crawl. At some point, she would have to talk to the priest again and there wasn't always going to be others around. But she was not nearly at the point where she was prepared for that to happen.

She cast another glance at him from the corner of her eye. Seto was focused on the details of the meeting that the pharaoh had called to discuss his son's upcoming birthday and pending coronation. Joey was relieved that she wasn't late to the meeting but she was definitely cutting it close. She was unsure of whether or not Seto had seen her sneak in but with Joey's luck she was sure she would hear about it later.

The meeting was short. It was mainly about tightening up the guards and security for the next little while. The pharaoh mentioned the ball and he also mentioned that the princess would be here soon and he wanted to make sure she felt safe. Joey knew that many were questioning the pharaoh on why security was being doubled almost two months before her arrival but of course Joey knew better.

 _I wonder how they would all react knowing that the princess is already here?_

Joey was about to leave the throne room and go back to bed until she heard an all too familiar voice calling her name.

"Wheeler."

Her entire body convulsed when she heard him approaching. Slowly turning around to face the source of the voice, Joey looked up into the same blue eyes that had haunted her sleep.

"Priest." She answered, without any sort of emotion.

"You do remember that we have a training session this morning right?"

Joey inwardly sighed and grumbled out some not so nice words that were definitely directed at the high priest.

"Pardon? I didn't quite catch that Mutt."

Letting out a small growl before continuing, Joey was actually able to pull herself together.

"Yes I did, High Priest Seto. I was just heading to the training grounds right now as a matter of fact."

"Oh good, that means I don't have to yell at you."

All Joey could do was try and mute the growl that was emanating from her throat as the High Priest walked right past her, but not before bumping his shoulder right into her, throwing her slightly off balance.

"What the hell was that for?"

"Oh nothing. I just thought I would test your balance and strength before our training session. It looks to me like it will be over before it even starts."

Seto couldn't even take the time to turn around to face Joey when he was talking to her. He did however make the effort to turn slightly so that she could see the smirk on his face and the smug confidence he was now exuding.

 _God this man is infuriating_

"Well we will have to see about that now won't we?"

"Hmmmm look who finally woke up… Let's go. We can't train in the normal training grounds if we want to keep your abilities a secret. Follow me."

And with that, no more words were spoken, he just walked off, leaving Joey in the middles of the corridor stunned, with no more words to be had.

UGH

Joey of course had no choice but to the follow the pompous priest because she had not a hot clue on where to go.

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Ashtianna spent most of her day in the garden, hoping to see Yami again but sadly it seemed he had too many duties that day and could not get away to see her.

 _I guess being the Prince's head servant can get quite demanding…. It' too bad… I had a really good time with him the other day and would have loved to continue getting to know him… He is so sweet, and kind but he is adventurous and sly all at the same time._

Without Yami to keep her company, Ashtianna's day had been quite boring and uneventful.

 _God this is more boring than when I was back at home and everyone knew I was the princess. This whole hiding and disguise thing is getting pretty old, real quick._

Her thoughts quickly switched to the life she had to flee. Ashtianna sighed over the fact that she had no idea what was going on in her homeland. The thoughts that came to mind when thinking about what Dartz had done to her beautiful kingdom and to her parents were terrifying. She knew that she couldn't do anything about it here and that was the most frustrating part to her.

 _Why are people still treating me like a little girl? I'm sure I could have done something if I was just given the chance…_

Of course Ashtianna didn't get the chance to think about what she could have done because someone interrupted her thoughts before she even had a chance to ponder.

"ASH"

"AGH. God… Mana you scared me. You can't just go around sneaking up on people like that." Ashtianna was clutching at her heart, praying to god that it wouldn't burst right out of her at that moment in time.

"Oh I'm sorry Princess – "

Ashtianna was quick on her feet to cover the poor girls mouth with a clasp of her hand before anything else came tumbling out.

"SHHHHHHHH. Not so loud. Remember? No one is supposed to know who I am."

Mana slowly removed the princess' hand from her mouth.

"Oops… I'm sorry Ash. If you hadn't noticed, I tend to not think before I speak most of the time. I will try to be better."

"It's quite alright Mana. No one is around so it looks like we are in the clear. Now, what brings you to the garden?"

"Oh right. We have to get you ready for the party."

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Mana didn't give much information up on their walk back to the girl's bedroom quarters and it was starting to make the princess pretty antsy.

"Mana will you please tell me what is going on?"

"It's a surprise Ash. Just wait… we are almost there and then I will tell you everything."

"Ugh. Fine."

The girls continued their walk through the palace till they came around the corner right before their room and all they could hear was a significant amount of laughter. The girls both looked at each other with the same confused look on their faces. Not wanting to wait any longer, the two opened up the double wide doors and were quickly graced with a huge surprise.

Malik was keeled over, holding her gut, laughing her face off. Ryou, along with Mai and Serenity, were desperately trying to keep Joey back from, what it seemed like, killing Malik.

"MALIK I WILL KILL YOU!"

"Joey, stop! Killing Malik will not make you feel any better."

"WANNA BET!?"

Joey tried to leap past the other girl's arms but she was no match for all three of the women holding her back.

"BAHAHAHAHAHAHA You should have seen them."

"Why I oughta!"

Ash couldn't wait any longer.

"What is going on here?"

Malik was able to halt her laughter momentarily to get out the answer that Ashtianna was looking for.

"Ryou…. Hahahaha… had come to get me and Mai and Serenity to get ready for tonight but no one knew where Joey was so I went out to find her… hahahaha I never thought that when I eventually found Joey that I would see her the way that I did…."

"Malik I will kill you!"

"What do you mean Malik? What did you see?" asked Ash. At this point, everyone else in the room was completely confused at what was going on and what Malik had told them had not helped at all.

"Joey… hahahaha… High Priest Seto… very compromising situation hahahaha"

Malik was no longer able to keep it together which meant that the rest of the group had to read between the lines.

Basically, Malik had walked in on High Priest Seto straddling, a very breathless, Joey, on the ground, pinning both her arms back behind her head. Both were sweaty and out of breath. Needless to say, Malik's thought went straight to the gutter.

"NOTHING HAPPENED! We were sparring and he got the better of me, that's it!"

"Bahahaha… Yeah sure, whatever you say Josephine. All I know is that I have lusted and have been lusted over so I know the look that people get when they want something… and you both _definitely_ wanted something hahahaha."

"AS IF!

"Joey is this true?" asked Ashtianna

"Obviously not! Why one earth would I want anything from that pompous, big-headed, jerk!?"

"I don't know Joey. You seem pretty flustered…. I've never known anyone, besides Malik, that could get under your skin like this…. I mean the High Priest is pretty good looking… I mean, we wouldn't judge you if you did take a liking to him."

"I DO NOT LIKE HIM!"

"Okay, okay, okay. You don't like him. We got it."

"Then tell her that!" Joey then pointed at Malik, who was still rolling on the floor laughing.

"Alright Malik, it's over. Joey and the High Priest were simply sparring and that's it. Joey says there is nothing between them and I believe her."

Malik slowly started to bring herself off the floor, still giggling slightly.

"Fine, whatever you say princess."

"Alright. Thank you Malik. Now, why were we brought here again?"

No answer was given to the young princess, instead, Mai, Serenity and Mana all shared a look and then smiled at the four young women.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

No wonder Mai, Mana and Serenity didn't tell the girls what they had planned until it was too late. Of course, Ryou and Ashtianna did not mind… Joey and Malik were a different story.

"You have got to be kidding me Mai! I am not traipsing around the palace in this! The white servant dress was bad enough!

Joey walked out from where she had been changing wearing a very extravagant outfit. She was glitzed out from head to toe in a beautiful one-piece black dress. It was a strapless chiffon dress that was belted by a solid gold belt, right at smallest part of her waist. The skirt on the dress was less flowy and actually hugged some of Joey's curves. If her curves weren't accentuated enough then the massive slit up her left thigh sure did.

"You can basically see up my crotch in this dress! How am I supposed to move!?"

"Its called being a lady my dear. Try it sometime." Mai had had just about enough of Joey's constant complaints about the outfits that she was putting her in. Joey had a wonderful figure and it irritated the hell out of Mai that Joey was unable to see how good she looked. It also bugged the hell out of her with how she, not only dressed like a man but acted like one too. Mai was one of the most feminine women in the palace, besides the queen. She was not afraid to show off what god had given her and it bugged her when women around her ignored their inner and outer beauty.

"Joey, listen to Mai. She knows what she's talking about. Personally, I think you look beautiful!" Ryou had walked into the conversation and decided to add it. Ryou was wearing a beautiful light blue outfit. The top was a crisscross bandeau type top but it had sleeves that draped off each shoulder. The material that covered her bust was thicker as it was many pieces of material layered over one another. However, one piece of fabric hung down from the bottom seam of the bandeau top, which gave the illusion of her navel being covered up even though the material was completely see through. The bottom part of her outfit was a white and light blue, chiffon skirt. The skirt sat just above her belly button and hung all the way down to the floor. Ryou's outfit was completed with a matching light blue scarf that was lightly wrapped on her head and over her shoulders. She looked like a beautiful snowflake with her snow white hair. All of her accessories were silver and her hair was left down to compliment the head scarf.

"What the hell? Ryou is way more covered than I am. Her head is even covered. How is that fair?"

"Ryou has a very sweet and gentle nature and I thought that this outfit complimented her personality. Yours was chosen to compliment you personality as well. However, I'm beginning to think that complimenting you in anyway is basically impossible." Mai scoffed as she continued to fiddle with Ryou's makeup.

"So you thought the color black and sexy, crotch high slits complimented my personality?"

Mai had just about had it at this point and was basically boiling over.

"No Joey. That dress was chosen for you because black is not just the color of darkness but of strength and confidence. It also eludes to the mysterious side of your personality. I chose the dress with the high slit just in case you have to break out into your combat skills. I didn't want a long flowy dress to get in your way."

Ryou, Mana and Serenity stared in awe as Mai tore a strip of the blonde warrior. No one but Malik had ever gone up against Joey.

Joey was completely tongue tied. She had no words to say. There was only one word that seemed to come to mind.

 _SHIT_

"Now, if you're quite done complaining and bitching to me about your dress, I would like to continue getting you ladies ready for dinner so that you're not the last ones to arrive to the table."

Mai quickly turned to continue helping Ryou with her makeup and final little details. Joey still had nothing to say and for the life of her, couldn't seem to move her feet. She was finally saved by Serenity, who proceeded to take her to another vanity to fix her hair and makeup, which is where Joey was finally able to form a decent sentence.

"I didn't mean to hurt her feelings…. I just have never dressed this way… ever. This just so isn't me…"

"Look Joey. I know how you feel. When I first arrived to the palace I was wearing drab, colorless, unflattering dresses that were better suited for a twelve year old. I never wore make up and my hair always stayed straight down. That was all I had ever known and was hesitant to try anything else."

"But you wear such colorful and beautiful dresses now. You're always done up whenever I see you."

"That is because Mai showed me how beautiful I could be on the outside as well as on the inside. I was never a confident young woman, but Mai has helped me explore who I am and has helped me gain more self-confidence through the way that I present myself. I'm not saying that you should completely change who you are as a person, and neither is she. She just probably thinks that you've got more to you than just the one side and she wants to help you bring it out."

Joey stared at the young woman who was braiding her hair and just for a moment, she saw a little bit of herself in the young red head… before her life turned upside down. She was wise beyond her years… After that, Joey let the girls do whatever they wanted to her. She still wasn't completely comfortable with the situation but she wanted to see if it could grow on her.

 _I've never been too good at the whole "girl" thing… I guess while we are undercover I could try it…_

While Serenity was finishing up with Joey, Malik had finally entered the room in the outfit that Mai had chosen for her.

"FINALLY. Something that actually works on my body."

Mai had chosen a dark, royal purple for Malik, as she thought it would complement her eyes. The outfit was a two piece like Ryou's. However, Malik's outfit had no straps, no head scarf, no material under her bust to cover her navel, and her skirt hit right below her belly button, right on her hips. Malik's skirt also had a thigh high slit similar to Joey's, except there were two of them, one up her right thigh and one up her left thigh. The outfit was very sexy. Malik's platinum blonde hair had been pulled back half and her eyes were outlined in a dark layer of kohl. If anyone could pull off the look that Malik was wearing, it was Malik.

"Wow Malik… you look great." Ryou complimented her friend. Ryou had always been a little jealous of Malik and how she was able to be so effortlessly beautiful and sexy. All the men wanted her and all women were jealous of her. The worst part about it was that she didn't even try. Although Ryou was jealous of her, she knew that she would never be able to pull of something like that.

"Lord Malik… I didn't realize your position while we are undercover is a whore in the pharaoh's harem."

Joey had just finished up with Serenity and was right there when her friend decided to make her grand entrance. She could not help herself when it came to bashing Malik.

"Oh HA HA Joey. At least I have some sex appeal, unlike some people in this room…"

Of course Malik never mentioned a name but the insinuating was all directed to Joey, and everyone knew it too.

Joey was already in enough trouble tonight so she decided to be smart for once and decided to not engage Malik in any sort of argument. For this, everyone was happy. Everyone continued getting themselves ready. Ryou and Joey helped Serenity get ready and Malik helped Mana get ready, to the dismay of Mana. Everyone was so busy that they failed to notice the quiet, small footsteps of the princess, walking towards the largest mirror in the room.

Ashtianna stood in front of the massive floor length mirror that was in their chambers. Mai had ordered her to take a bath before they did anything too drastic. She made sure to take her time and use all the vanilla scented oils she could get her hands on. Once she was done with her bath, as she waited for her hair to dry, Mai helped her apply a little light make up, just enough to give her a little colour. She then slipped into the outfit that had been, apparently, picked out earlier in the week for her. The light aqua blue fabric looked absolutely stunning on her complexion. Gold jewellery was placed in her ears, on her fingers, round her neck and one especially wide band round her upper arm. Once her hair was dry, not a lot had to be done to it as it was already naturally curly. The girls decided to just add some small braids at the side and have them meet at the back of her head, creating a sort of crown look. She could not have looked more amazing in that moment.

 _It feels like forever since I felt this beautiful…_

Ashtianna was so engrossed in the transformation that Mai had put her through that she was also unaware that her three dearest friends had joined her at her sides.

"Oh Ash… you look absolutely amazing." Said Ryou as she stepped up to be along Ashtianna's right side, lightly brushing the princess's bare arm with her hand.

"Yeah, wow. I know you dressed and looked like a princess at home, but I don't think I've ever seen you look **this** gorgeous."

"No Kidding, You could even pass my looks now."

Joey promptly punched Malik in the arm for her last comment which quickly had Malik crying out in pain and rubbing her now very sore upper arm. Of course, Ashtianna never took Malik's comment in a bad way. Ashtianna just giggled and smiled at her friends for being so different and never changing who they are.

"Thank you girls. I must admit, it has been awhile since I have truly thought of myself as a princess. Even before we had to run from my kingdom and go undercover, I was never quite sure if I was right for it… I still don't feel worthy of my parents kingdom… however, I won't lie… seeing myself like this does something to me… I feel amazing… like I can take on the world."

"That is exactly what I love to hear hun." Mai sauntered up to the group with a kind and warm smile grazing her lips. She was basically like their fairy godmother. "You look absolutely stunning princess."

"Thank you Mai… and thank you for doing all of this for us. If I may ask, why are we getting dressed up like this?"

"The Pharaoh has asked that you all join him and the members of his inner council, and the royals of the palace for dinner. He wants to introduce you all to the most important figures in the palace so that they know who you are so they treat you with respect. None of them will know that Ashtianna is a princess but they will know that they four of you supposedly serve the future Queen. That in itself is enough in formation for them to treat you like royalty and to not go snooping around in your business."

"Sounds good. I am freaking famished." Added Joey

"You're always freaking famished." Scoffed Malik under her breath.

"Alright, I think we are all ready to go but there is one last detail we need to take care of."

Without saying a word, Mai brought an aqua blue veil out from behind her and held it out for the princess.

The princess' face fell quite quickly when the veil was brought out.

 _Just when I was beginning to feel confident in myself and how I look, I have to go and cover up everything…_

It was a shame she had to cover up most of her face when they would leave for the banquet feast. Mai felt terrible for the young princess. She could tell that the princess was not one of the most confident princess' around. Having to put that veil on her would only out her confidence down more. Mai started to clip the veil around the front of Ashtianna's face.

"I am sorry princess. You know that I would never condone to covering up any part of you but you know this is for your safety."

"I know. Thank you Mai." Ashtianna smiled up at the older woman and smiled.

Mai knew it was a forced smile but it was better than nothing.

() () () () () () () () () () () () ()

 _My Patience is growing thin Otogi._

 _The people here do not see me as a true ruler._

 _Without the princess I will never be able to_

 _truly be the King of Greece._

 _Although killing the people who defy me_

 _brings me pleasure, if this keeps up I will_

 _have no one to rule over._

 _I trusted that you would be able to deliver_

 _in bringing me the princess. So far,_

 _you have failed me. If you continue to_

 _fail me I will have no choice but to see_

 _you as an enemy to my rule. I am warning you,_

 _if you do not find the princess soon, it will_

 _be your head on the chopping block instead._

 _King Dartz_

The paper was crumpled up and thrown to the ground and burned faster than it was read. Lord Otogi had been searching high and low for the princess since the day she left but in every kingdom that he crossed, there were no signs of her. He was growing weary and angry every passing day.

"Fuck him and his princess. I am a lord myself, why should I be busting my back out here searching for his princess?"

Otogi had been growing angry with Dartz for days now which is why he was going out of his way to stop in Khemmet to visit the old fool who called himself a pharaoh, whom was dumb enough to believe that he was an ally of Egypt. Dartz like to play people. It was enjoyable for him, plus, if he is ever in trouble, he has plenty of people to turn to. There is also the fact that because he claims to be allies with everyone, it makes it so easy to back stab those whom are dumb enough to bring him into his inner circle.

The Pharaoh seemed to be one of the dumb ones who allowed him in. There was also the fact that Lady Serenity resided in the palace. Lord Otogi had always wanted Lady Serenity, and almost had her once. Sadly, she backed off pretty quickly when she found him fooling around with one of the palace dancers. He was upset at the time but Otogi was never one to give up or back down. She would be his someday, he was sure of it.

It did not take Otogi long to get to the palace. Of course, with his status, he was promptly escorted to see the pharaoh.

 _This is way too fucking easy sometimes._

Otogi laughed inwardly and smirked his entire way to the pharaoh's chambers, but as soon as the doors opened, Otogi put on his best face and put on his best act.

"My Pharaoh, It is so nice to see you." Said Otogi as he kneeled in front of the pharaoh. The pharaoh being the ruler that he is, promptly walked to the lord and made a motion for him to rise.

"Lord Otogi, please rise. This kneeling business is nonsense for such a close ally and friend as yourself."

"As you wish, your greatness." Spoke Otogi as he rose from the ground.

"Now tell me, what do I owe the pleasure of your unannounced visit?"

"I was traveling from village to village, doing my duty and making sure that the people are well looked after and I decided to take a break as I was only a day's ride away from your palace and it seems like forever since we were last together."

"Well I am very happy that you decided to join us, and with such good timing as well. We happen to be having a grand feast tonight in honour of some new guests who have joined us in our palace in the last little while."

"I am pleased that I came at a good time."

() () () () () () () () () ()

This was the first evening in a week since the girls had been in the palace that they were to join the royal family for dinner. Ashtianna was nervous and excited all at the same time. The outfit and makeup that Mai had put together for her helped a little bit but on the inside she was still freaking out. She wished Yami could be there as well, maybe then he could wash away her worries.

The four girls, along with Lady Serenity, found their way to the banquet room where a large long table was set up for dinner. Mana and Mai were also there but they came in on their own as they were neither honoured guests nor royalty. There were some people already there, some that she did not recognize and some that she did. She quickly noticed that both Lady Vivian and Lady Anzu were glaring at them as they took their seats at the dinner table. She, however, did not notice the white haired man in the corner of the room eyeing up her friend Ryou nor the Platinum blonde who was blatantly lusting after her friend Malik.

Ashtianna leaned over to whisper in Joey's ear. "Joey, I feel weird being here. It's odd sitting at a noble table as a servant. Everyone is staring at us like we do not belong,"

"Don't worry about it Ash. Everything will be fine." Assured Joey. Joey was trying desperately to sound strong for her friend but in reality she was struggling herself with the blue eyed man who was seated only a couple places down from where they were. _Ugh of course he is here. Why wouldn't he be? He is practically a royal._ Seto continued to stare at the blonde, electric blue eyes unwavering.Joey quickly tried to brush off the High Priest but it was harder to do than she thought. _Why can I not shake this guy?! I mean, it isn't like his stares are very comforting! How would he feel if I just started staring at him?!_ Joey quickly decided against that idea, realizing that he would probably actually enjoy that. Joey was brought out of her own thoughts when it was announced that the Pharaoh and Queen were entering the room. Everyone stood up at their seat and waited for the Pharaoh and the Queen to take their seat in which everyone else promptly followed. There was another man with the King and Queen whom Ashtianna did not recognize. He was definitely handsome and looked to be a quite significant royal. So why was it she had never seen him before tonight?

"Welcome friends! Tonight is a special night, as we have a few special guests with us tonight. First of all, I would like to announce that Lord Otogi has graced us with an unannounced visit tonight. We are so happy that you could join us."

The handsome man who had walked in with the pharaoh and Queen earlier spoke up to answer.

"It is my pleasure my Pharaoh. I am just lucky that I came on such a special night." As Otogi was finishing up his sentence, he slowly turned his head to look straight at the princess.

 _Oh my goodness he's looking right at me._

Ashtianna quickly removed her gaze from Lord Otogi and decided that the table was far more interesting.

"As well as Lord Otogi, we have four special guests that are joining us tonight and who will also be staying with us for an extended period of time, Ash, Josephine, Malik and Ryou. As You all know, the crown prince has been arranged to marry a foreign princess. These four young ladies are the young princess's hand maidens and they shall be staying with us until the princess's arrival. You shall treat them as equals, as the princess treats her servants with the utmost care and respect and she would not be happy to hear that some of her closest friends were being treated poorly. Have I made myself clear?" There was silence around the table and a few heads nodding their head in acceptance. "Wonderful! Now let us eat!"

While the pharaoh was introducing the girls, Lord Otogi had not wavered in his stare at the young woman in blue.

 _Who is this beautiful creatures… I have never seen them in all my travels, I am sure of it. I have been to most of the palaces in the land and if she is as close to a princess as the Pharaoh claims her to be, then you would think that I would have met her before._

The thing is… Lord Otogi had only ever met the princess once, and that had been a long time ago. When searching for the princess, he was going strictly off the details that Dartz had given him. However, with the princess being covered up the way she was, there was no way that Dartz would be able to tell who she really was. He had also never seen Joey, Malik or Ryou as Malik and Ryou tend to always be training and Ryou tended to stay in her library where she would not be disturbed.

But before anyone could start eating, the doors to the banquet room were pushed open and another young man entered. Ash was busy trying to get a grape past her veil when she heard his voice.

"I am sorry father; I did not mean to be late. I was just finishing up my studies. Shimon kept me quite late this evening."

Both the King and Queen were stunned momentarily as they specifically told Shimon to keep Atem away from dinner that evening. They were not ready for half of their secret to come out and were completely fine with the princess believing that Atem was actually "Yami", the prince's personal servant. They were trying to put off the two of them finding out the truth about at least one of their hidden identities. Queen Nefra turned to her husband, without saying a word and gave him a look that screamed "What do we do now!?"

The Pharaoh's hands were tied. He couldn't very well introduce him as 'Yami' and have a 'servant' sit at their table. Atem would just have to get himself out of this one now.

"It is alright son. Please have a seat. Oh, and Atem, I would like to introduce you to the princess's hand maidens who have joined us for supper this evening. You may have seen them around the palace but tonight we wanted to formally introduce them to the court. This is Josephine, Malik, Ryou and Ash."

Atem had hardly heard a word that his father had said on the count that he had locked eyes with a certain green eyed maiden who looked as surprised as he did.

"These fine ladies will be staying with us for the next couple of months before the princess's arrival."

Without skipping a beat, Atem was quick to respond. "It is a pleasure to meet you all."

 _Oh no this is not good! I did not think Atem would be at dinner tonight!_ Thought Joey as she was also racking her brain for how she could fix this. She knew that 'Yami' was actually Atem but obviously 'Yami' had not yet told her dear friend of his true self. It was hard to read her friends emotions with her being so covered up but she could see a small glimmer of a tear beginning to form in the bottom corner of her one eye.

 _No, no, no! Why is this happening! Why does everything good in my life have to turn out badly? He lied to me! He lied….._

All three girls noticed the tear that was now making its way down Ash's cheek. They all felt horrible for their friend but they also knew that there was nothing that they could do about it. All three watched as their princess stood up from her place at the table.

"Please excuse me, I would really like to turn in for the night. I am not feeling too well." Once she removed herself from the table she approached the Pharaoh and Queen. She bowed her head before giving her thanks to her gracious hosts. "Thank you Pharaoh, Queen Nefra, for your hospitality. However, I must remove myself for the evening."

The Pharaoh and the Queen nodded and bid her goodnight. Both held a look of sadness and remorse for the young girl as they knew she was hurt. Joey looked to her friend with concern in her eyes but Ash waved it off as nothing and told them to stay and enjoy their evening. She made her exit, But Atem was right behind her.


	17. Chapter 17

Loving that I'm back writing this story! I'm so excited that I'm posting twice in one week! Enjoy!

I don't own anything!

Chapter 17

 _Why would he lie to me!? I cannot believe this! I thought for once in my life someone was being truly genuine to me in regards to their feelings… Turns out he was just like all the rest…._

Ashtianna hadn't truly left the banquet room, she only turned the corner so that a smaller amount of people would see her cry.

 _I shouldn't let this bother me so much… It's not like we've known each other for very long… It's not like he cared for me… This is stupid! Why should I let a stupid man dictate my life! Men have been dictating my entire life and it stops now._

Both Joey and Atem seemed to be wanting to go follow their sad friend, but before Joey could get up from the table she felt a large hand grab her left wrist. When Joey turned to her side where her dear friend used to be and was surprised to see that her spot had been filled by the one and only, High Priest Seto. The man didn't even bother to look at her, he just continued to eat his dinner. However, when Joey tried to remove her wrist from his hold, his grip only got tighter.

 _Ugh! This is going to be a long night._

Before Atem could make his attempt at following the object of his desire, he was stopped because Ash came back into the room.

"I apologize for the brief departure. My sickness seems to have disappeared and I would not want to miss out on this wonderful meal that has been prepared."

"That is quite alright my dear. Please take a seat." The Pharaoh was happy that the princess seemed to pull herself together.

Ashtianna went to go and take her seat again but it seemed that her seat was taken by the High Priest. Now the only seat open was right beside….

 _Of course_

Ashtianna took the only set open right beside the prince. The prince didn't bother to say anything though as it was quite evident how mad the Ash was at him. However, all through the meal, Ash could feel men's eyes upon her, especially Lord Otogi's, looking her over, and appraising her…she also noticed when Otogi's eyes darted to her throat as she swallowed her wine. She could also see the lust building in his eyes, however, she ignored him.

 _At this point I'm better off talking to Atem._

Things weren't going so well for Atem either as he also noticed the consistent stares being directed towards Ash. He was visibly fuming by the time the final course was being served.

Otogi could not help the thoughts that raced through his mind. He felt his heart give a little flip when he heard her sweet laughter. _I don't know who this woman is that the pharaoh has brought in for the prince but I will surely have her instead of him. He does not deserve a beauty like her. Hmmmm I wonder what she would sound like in passion.'_ Otogi thought as he was still watching her closely when the meal ended.

Ashtianna couldn't stand it anymore and went for the directions she thought would be a little less painful; actually talking to Atem….

"Prince Atem?" she asked quietly. Atem was taken off guard by Ash's voice but yet, he was able to keep his cool.

"Yes." He answered absently.

"I just wanted to congratulate you on your upcoming marriage. I am sure the two of you will be very happy." Spoke Ashtianna, as the words burned coming up her throat. "You seem…distracted. Is there something on your mind?" Atem looked at the woman that had spoken to him, and in hushed tones, answered her.

"You know exactly what is occupying my mind Ash…"

When the meal finally ended, the guests moved from the tables to the centre of the room where there was plenty of room for dancing should they so wish. The musicians started to play while the servants cleared the tables of the empty dishes and then broke them down into several smaller tables and dotted them around the edge of the room with chairs for anyone who wanted to forgo the dancing and just sit down.

Pharaoh Aknamkanon watched over the proceedings with his son and his wife by his side, and with Lord Otogi very close by. Lord Otogi's attention was taken by the exotic beauty walking away from the centre of the room, with the prince, surprisingly, falling closely behind. She seemed to be looking for someone but also seemed to not be finding them, so she started wandering back towards the throne. He licked his lips as he watched her graceful movements, _'I knew she wouldn't be able to resist'_ he thought smugly. The girl bowed before the pharaoh, her long golden brown hair falling slowly over her one shoulder. Otogi noticed that the girl could be no older than 18 years old but she was so graceful in the way she moved. Otogi was surprised, when instead of talking to him, she turned to the young prince.

"Prince Atem, Your grace, my pharaoh. Thank you for the wonderful evening, however, I am going to retire for the night I think." She said shyly.

Both Aknamkanon and Nefra nodded their heads and watched as the young princess headed towards the bed chambers. They were so lost in thought that they failed to notice that their dear son had followed her. They also failed to notice how angry Lord Otogi had become.

 _Damn her! I might have to extend my visit a little while longer so that I can get to know this exotic beauty a bit more. I guess for now I should continue with my charade so that the pharaoh and Queen do not suspect anything._

() () () () () () () () () ()

Atem rounded the corner and spotted the object of his affection walking right in front of him. He began to sneak up behind Ash and before she knew it, his arms were intertwined with hers.

"Allow me to walk you to your room."

"Yami! What are you doing!... I mean, Prince Atem…" slightly bowing her head towards the prince. "Please you should not be here. We should not even be talking like this." Ashtianna was struggling to remind herself that she should be acting like a servant around the crown prince instead of acting like his equal.

"Please Ash let me explain.—"

"I'm sorry but I do not see how that could be helpful in this situation. I am but a lowly servant and you are the crown prince of Egypt. You are also engaged to be married. Now if you'll excuse me I would like to retire for the evening," Ash began to turn away from Atem and head off towards her room when a strong hand wrapped itself around her wrist and she was forced to turn around to see what was getting in her way of leaving. Of course it was Atem. "What are you doing? Please let me go."

"Not until you let me explain myself."

The roughness of his voice was coming out but it did not scare Ashtianna. If anything it was making the prince seem more attractive. _I may regret this later but… let's see what he has to say…_ Her silence and the nod of her head were the only sign she would give to let Atem know he could proceed. Luckily, he got the hint.

"Thank you." Although he knew she was going to listen to her, he could not bring himself to let her go. "When I first met you I was otherwise engaged in many different thoughts going through my mind. To put it in better terms, I was quite frazzled. Then I met you. I was quite surprised when I bumped into someone in the royal garden, as not a lot of people enjoy it as much as I do. I was quickly brought out of my haze when I looked down into the most amazing emerald green eyes I have ever seen. Although your eyes were the only thing that I could see, I was quickly entranced by your beauty and I knew right then and there that I wanted to get to know you. I found your love of nature and animals astounding to say the least and you just seemed so down to earth. But when I found out you were one of the princess's hand maidens, my mood quickly changed because I feared I would not be given the chance to get to know you better. I didn't want you to know that I'm actually the crown prince because I feared that it would drive you away. I know I am to be married to someone else but my heart tells me that it is wrong and that marriage is for love, not for political advancement and pre-conceived arrangements. I am very sorry for lying to you but I could not risk losing the chance to get to know you more. I do not regret my choices because over the last week I got the chance to learn more about the beautiful, intelligent, sincere, caring and amazing woman that stands in front of me…. That's all I have to say. I am sorry for deceiving you." Atem slowly let go of the wrist he had been holding onto and began to turn away from the woman he cared for deeply.

Ash had no idea how to respond to what she had just heard. Never in her life had a man put out his feelings for her like that while sounding so genuine and caring. She finally let go of the breath that she did not know she was holding. Quickly, without thinking, she reached forward to grab the prince's wrist.

"Yami wait…- I mean Atem.. Sorry that may take some getting used to… Did you really mean everything that you said?" Atem turned towards the beautiful creature in front of him and closed the gap between them, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Every word." Ashtianna could not help the blush that began to form on her cheeks. She tried to look away but Atem was too quick. He took his hand and held her chin in place. "Don't try to turn away from me, please. If you do I can't see those sparkling eyes of yours." Ash could not stop the smile that graced her lips from growing till her face hurt. "You know, I would love to see that smile of yours instead of only seeing the fabric covering your mouth. Do you think I might be able to?" asked Atem, hoping with all his heart that she may allow him to.

"We shall see my prince. I am still upset with you for lying to me." Answered Ash as she tried to contain her giggling, with little luck.

"Oh playing hard to get now are we? Fine, I will wait. Mark my words though, I will see that smile eventually." Both stood there for quite a while just looking at one another smiling. "Forgive me, but I feel as though the night got away on me and I have not had the chance to really speak to you as of yet so I would still love it if you would allow me to accompany you to your room."

"Actually, would it be alright if we joined the party again? I'm not actually tired…. I was just trying to come up with an excuse not to be around you…"

"But you feel alright being around me now?" asked Atem.

"I believe so." Ashtianna smiled up at Atem. He then offered her his arm and the two of them made their way back to the banquet hall.

"That's good… Cause I would hate to miss a dance with the prettiest girl here tonight."

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Joey was furious of the fact that she had lost her sight of the princess. This was her one and only job while she was in the palace and now, because of a blue-eyed handsome idiot, she was unable to do her job properly. Since the princess left the first time and came back, Seto had not left her side. Even when the tables and chairs were moved to create the dance floor, he stuck to her side like glue. Every time anyone got anywhere near her, Seto would glare them down and they would quickly turn around.

"Seto you do realize that I can take care of myself!? And if I want to dance with some one, or vise versa, then I can! I'm a big girl!"

Seto had no response for the blonde which was received with a massive huff from Joey. She was about to say something again but she quickly caught a glimpse of the princess walking in with the prince from one of the corridors leading out of the hall. Both looked surprisingly happy.

 _Hmmm I wonder what happened there…._

Atem led the girl to the dance floor where they started to dance.

Joey was happy for her friend. Obviously the two had talked and everything was now fine. _I'm sure neither one gave out too much information or Ash would have been over here yelling at my face instead of dancing with the prince._ Joey was lost in her thoughts about her friend but was quickly ripped from her mind when she felt a strong arm snake around her waist. Before she knew what was happening, she was already on the dance floor in the arms of the high priest. She was about to say something but the look that Seto had given her told her to keep her mouth shut. Joey was in no mood to argue at this point so she went with the flow.

Elsewhere, Angry, Otogi sat at one of the outer tables; he made a serving girl leave a full pitcher of wine on the table then dismissed her. He drank heavily as he watched the crown prince dance, talk and laugh with the unbelievably beautiful noble woman. _'She will be mine!'_ Otogi thought as he continued to refuse all requests for dances. _How is it that the crown prince gets to be engaged to the beautiful Grecian Princess but is also gives his time to a common servant?!_

Atem and Ashtianna danced for quite a while with little to no conversation between them. Now words were really needed.

Atem sighed, "I'm sorry Ash."

Atems comment took Ashtianna off guard "Why are you sorry my prince?"

"I do not mean to be so distant but I'm not sure how…. How people will react when they see me dancing with you when they know that I am engaged already…"

It hurt Ashtianna to hear Atem say those words but she knew they were true. She also did not blame the prince for thinking them. She knew how it was; the image that one had to portray when in the spotlight.

"It's quite alright prince. I feel no resentment towards you for this."

Atem relaxed slightly after hearing what Ash had to say and the two continued to dance.

On the other side of the dance floor, Lord Otogi was continuing to drink away his problems. As he continued to drink he continued to stare at the woman, mentally undressing her, but it was not enough, he wanted to see those delicious looking curves for real. He continued to watch the stunning woman as the two seemed to talk and laugh with one another the way she smiled at Atem made him burn, that smile should be directed at him! ' _Damn it!_ He thought as he slammed his goblet down, there was no way that he was going to lose one as beautiful as she to the pompous and spoiled crown prince of Egypt!

Ash and Atem were enjoying their dance but without even realizing what had happened she was whisked away by another man's arms. She looked up to see who had so rudely taken her away and she was greeted by cold, lustful eyes staring down at her. _Lord Otogi_

"My dear, beautiful, radiant lady. I could not help myself. I needed to have a chance to dance with such an amazing creature as yourself."

Ashtianna was disgusted with the man in front of her. His hands were cold and held her very roughly. He also reeked of alcohol.

"I am sorry Lord Otogi but I was in the middle of something. If you would please let me go I would greatly appreciate that." Ashtianna tried to get out of Otogi's grasp but he only tightened it.

"Oh no my sweet, not until I get a little taste" He whispered into her ear as his hands snaked around to her back where it was bare.

"Lord Otogi!" growled a deep voice from behind. "I believe the Lady asked to be let go." Atem could not stand Lord Otogi and his womanizing ways and they were even worse when they were directed towards the woman who had feelings for. He would have reacted sooner but was hesitant because he knew it would not look right for the crown prince to be sticking up for a peasant. But he could not stand to see Otogi push himself on an innocent young girl who wanted nothing to do with him. Otogi did let go of her and she promptly hurried over to Atem's side.

"My apologies your highness. I was lead to believe that you and the lady were done with your dance." He bowed his head and was about to leave but not until he gave Ash one more look that screamed, _You will be mine!_

Once Otogi left Ashtianna turned towards Atem with overflowing gratitude. "Thank you your Highness, I do not know what I would have done if you hadn't have stepped in."

"It was my duty, I could not let him get away with that." Atem smiled and all of Ash's worries seemed to melt away. Atem took a step closer to Ash and inched his way close enough to whisper in her ear. "I'm sorry for not stepping in earlier but we are in the middle of the banquet room, and there are people looking. That is the reason why I think we should go for a walk where people won't be watching."

"I think that is something that I could do." Atem smiled and the pair started towards the direction of Ash's room. The two made their way through the halls of the palace, walking to the stairs and making their way up towards where the bed chambers lay. They rounded the corner, Atem looked at her,

"Perhaps you may like to take a visit into the village if there is some time available. I would love to show you some more of my Kingdom. We could even say that I, as prince, wanted to show around one of my intended's maidens so that she is more acquainted with the markets and the world outside the palace." Ashtianna smiled and nodded.

"Perhaps. I will have to confirm it with the other maidens to see if the princess would be okay with it but I'm sure it would be no problem. I'm sure the princess would like it if I knew where all the best shops were located."

Atem nodded, "Alright then, well, I would love it if you would accompany me to the village. I would love to spend some more time with you... Just you and I... No distractions." She blushed and realized they were at her door. She turned to face him.

"I would really like that as well..." Atem smiled.

"That's good, because I do enjoy spending time with you and getting to know you. Though one thing could pose a problem..." She looked at him confused.

"What would that be?" she asked. He smirked as he dipped down so that she was closer to her level. He carefully moved the veil covering her mouth up so that her lips were uncovered and dipped down, quickly stealing a light kiss, causing Ash to let out a small gasp. He pulled back, his gaze intense.

"That." Ashtianna swore she must have matched a tomato right then and there, she had not expected that. Atem eyed her carefully.

"I apologize if that was to forward, I've just wanted to do that for the longest time." She bit her lip lightly, no one had ever kissed her before.

"No it's fine, I'm fine, I think." her words failing her. Atem chuckled.

"First time?" She nodded slowly, he smiled.

"If you don't mind, let's make your first kiss really count then." pressing back in once more. Ash felt his warm lips on her own, she was shy at first, but then relaxed. Atem slipped his hand in the crook of her neck, deepening the kiss. Atem pulled back slightly, his lips still brushing against hers.

"I don't know if I could stop, but I also don't want to push this on you." Atem was so close to losing himself in her. Her lips were so soft and she tasted of vanilla. He could not stop his wandering eyes from really taking in his beautiful lover. The curves of her body perfect in every way and her skin was so soft to touch. Her golden brown hair was simply stunning the way it cascaded down her back. But that dress, ugh that dress! All he wanted to do was run his hands all over her and rip that dress right off. Ashtianna was well aware of her prince's wandering eye and it did not bug her the way it did with the other men. She actually enjoyed the way her body made him look. She shuddered as the sensations consumed her, her lips quivered. She felt herself unable to open her eyes. Atem pressed lightly once more before he pulled back completely.

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Otogi had watched the lover's embrace the entire time. He was unable to hear anything but that did not matter. He watched as they laughed and talked as if they were now inseparable lovers.

 _How did this happen so quickly! He wanted nothing to do with her a minute ago! And now he can't take her eyes off her. Hmph. No matter she will still be mine._

Instead of going to his room, Otogi followed the two nobles and waited in the shadows for Atem to leave her side. He swayed unsteadily even as he smirked, _his seduction of the beautiful lady would begin tonight!_ As he leaned against the wall he began to imagine what it would be like to bed her, to touch her, to be buried…

Soft laughter pulled Otogi from his thoughts and he stepped further into the shadows when he heard Atem's voice.

"I hope you enjoyed yourself this evening?"

Ash blushed lightly "I did my prince."

"Good" Atem smiled down at the woman he loved. "Then I will see you tomorrow then? Same place? Same time?"

"Of course my prince. Good night."

After Ashtianna, had entered her room Otogi waited until he was sure that Atem had left. He knocked on her door and when she opened it Otogi forced his way in.

"Why are you here Lord Otogi?" she asked coldly

"To take back what is rightfully mine!" he said sharply

"Get out now!"

"I don't think so dearest." He snarled as he grabbed her arm and pulled her into his body intending to wrap his arms round her and sample what the prince already had, "You should be promised to me and by the gods I will have you!"

Ashtianna twisted from his grip "I SAID GET OUT!" she screamed

"Do not speak to me like that woman!" he said as he reached for her again.

"Or what? What will you do Lord Otogi?" Ashtianna challenged the drunken lord. She received her answer when Otogi backhanded her hard enough to send her crashing to the floor. The sound of running could be heard and Atem and some guards arrived in time to see, but not stop, Otogi strike the young woman.

"Guards!" Atem shouted. Two guards appeared and knelt before the prince "Escort Lord Otogi to his chambers and don't let him leave them again!" he said angrily. The guards grabbed Otogi by both arms and forcefully dragged him out of the room.

"Unhand me at once!" he snarled as he tried to break free "She needs to be taught to whom she belongs."

Before he was led away Otogi saw Atem rush to the peasant's side and help her from the floor "Are you alright?" he asked.

"I am, now that you're here." She said somewhat shakily. The two were far too caught up in trying to get over the recent ordeal that they did not hear the crash from outside Ash's door. Otogi had broken free from the guards and knocked them out. However, he wasn't interested in barging back into the room. He only wanted to see if he could dig up some more dirt to help him next time. He just never realized how helpful and insightful the information he was about to receive would be.

"How did you know to come here?" Ash asked Atem.

"I was not very far away when I heard you and Otogi arguing. I grabbed the nearest guards and came to see what was wrong. Ash I am so sorry that he hurt you."

Ash sighed as she leaned into Atem's firm chest. "I'm glad that you did."

Atem wrapped his arms round the slightly shaking form of the young girl and rested his head on hers, he closed his eyes and sighed. He knew this would not be the end of it, once Otogi had sobered up he would apologise and then wait for a few days before trying something else, Atem knew this for a fact, it's what Otogi always did when he'd upset someone he was trying to bed. What worried Atem was that Otogi's ploy usually worked.

"Would you kiss me again?" Ash flushed, " I just want to forget what he tried to do."

"Gladly." Atem whispered huskily before gently pulling the petite woman into his arms and kissing her. Ashtianna heard the low throaty growl Atem made and opened her mouth, inviting his tongue to enter and explore. Ash moved into the kiss as she wrapped her arms round his neck. She never wanted the kiss to end but sadly they both needed to come up for air at some point.

A little breathless, Ash was the first to speak. "You should go. I'm unsure on how long until the other maidens come back to the room. They could be back to our quarters any minute now."

"Alright I will go, but know that I am going, not because I want to but, because you asked me so nicely." Atem smiled and pecked her on the lips once more before taking his leave.

As Ashtianna slipped out and into her room. She glanced at him before shutting her door. Atem grinned as he made his way to his chambers. He couldn't believe what he had just done. He had been thinking about it for quite some time. He was just so happy that she responded the way she did. Ashtianna felt like her heart was going to explode, never had she felt like this before. She couldn't contain the smile she had on her lips, her fingers brushing over where his had just been. She made her way over and got dressed into her nightgown, and slipped into the covers. She felt high up in the clouds, she couldn't stop smiling. She curled into her bed and sighed with such happiness. She stared off into space, her mind on nothing, but how she felt right then and there. Just as she felt her eyes begin to close they shot right open again. There was no doubt in her mind anymore.

"I am falling for the Crown Prince of Egypt…."

There was just one problem. He is the crown prince and engaged to a foreign princess while she is a Grecian princess engaged to some Royal Prince that she has never met before. Nothing would change their fates…. He would be married at the end of the two months when the princess arrived and she would be sent to, who knows where, to marry someone she doesn't know, let alone love.

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In the shadows Otogi was overly confused about what he just heard and seen. _Ash? She is but a mere peasant! I know Atem sees himself as some sort of saint and good person but there is no way he would be slumming it with a servant. This 'Ash' seems familiar…. Who looks like…._

In that moment everything began to click for Otogi. _Oh Dartz is going to be so pleased when I tell him the good news. I knew that peasant had similarities in looks to that of the princess! And my suspicions about who she claimed to be have now been confirmed! Ash is really Princess Ashtianna! Now the names really make sense._

"Oh my dear princess I have found you. You thought you could get away with this. You thought you could hide from us. Well you were wrong! Hehehe no one will be able to save you now." Whispered Otogi as he sulked off into the shadows to bid his master with the good news.


End file.
